Dear Poetry Out Loud lovers, judges, volunteers, and aficionados,
Get thy poem on! Poetry Out Loud season will soon be upon us! This will be the Arts Council’s sixth year sponsoring this wonderful literary event! Yowza! Can you believe it?
We never forget that this program’s success is in large measure due to the generous, lively cadre of POL community volunteers who’ve immersed themselves in poetry and in judging (or tallying) at our participating high schools since 2009! Thank you for helping out all these years! You guys rock! Naturally, I’m hoping that all of you are still game to participate again for our 2016 Poetry Out Loud competition! Please say YES!—that you wouldn’t miss it for the world!
Since I recognize that you are all awash in emails and holiday solicitations, I’ll do my best to be brief and to the point here:
First, if you wish to participate in Poetry Out Loud this year, please fire off a quick email to me saying that you’re on! Or you can call me at the Arts Council: 530.295.3496.
Second, if you want to sign up for a refresher training course, or if you’ve never participated in Poetry Out Loud before but wish to do so, please sign up for one of the following training dates & times:
1. Monday, December 15, 2:30 to 5:00 pm @ the Fausel House, 772 Pacific St., Placerville.
2. Tuesday, Dec. 16, 2:30 to 5:00 pm @ the Fausel House, 772 Pacific St., Placerville.
3. Monday, Dec. 22, 6:30 to 8:30 pm @ the Fausel House, 772 Pacific St., Placerville.
As of today, four high school programs have committed to this year’s Poetry Out Loud competition—Oak Ridge High School, Charter University Prep, El Dorado High School, and Golden Sierra. I’m waiting to hear back from Ponderosa, South Lake Tahoe, and Union Mine. The juvenile hall facilities—Golden Ridge in Placerville and Blue Ridge in Placerville—are also on board, but they recruit their judges from the inside. And thus far, El Dorado High School has been the only school to sign up for a date: Tuesday, February 4, probably from 1:45 to 3:00 in the afternoon.
As soon as I hear back from the other schools, I’ll let you know!
Third— our county final will be held on Tuesday, February 10, from 7:00 to 9:00 pm at the Imagination Theater! Come one! Come all!
Fourth—our California state POL competition will be Sunday-Monday, March 15-16 in Sacramento, probably in the Senate Chambers.
Fifth—the National Finals will be Saturday-Sunday, April 28-29, in Washington, D.C.
And there you have it, all the Poetry Out Loud news that’s fit to print!
Do let me know if you wish to participate and if you wish to sign up for a Poetry Out Loud training. And, if you’ve any friends or family who might be interested in participating as well, send them my way!
Poem on!
Moira Magneson
Poetry Out Loud Coordinator
El Dorado Arts Council
Poetry Out Loud Coordinator
El Dorado Arts Council
