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Polk County Itemizer-Observer • February 25, 2015 7A
Poetry Slam
JOLENE GUZMAN/Itemizer-Observer
Dallas High School student Ami Pope reads her first
poem Thursday at Ink Blot’s poetry slam. Ink Blot, the
school’s literary magazine, hosts an event each month.
Dallas High’s literary magazine hosts events for creative expression
did an excellent job.”
Moore, a recent DHS
The Itemizer-Observer
graduate and sophomore at
Chemeketa Community
ALLAS — Jeff
College, wrote the piece,
Baer, a Dallas
about her father, just days
High School Eng-
before the poetry slam.
lish teacher, had two words
Thursday was the first time
of wisdom for former DHS
she read and received con-
student Emily Moore after
structive criticism before
she read one of her poems.
an audience.
“Publish it.”
“I just
The
recently
poem
got into
was enti-
“Open your eyes.
poetry,”
tled “Two
Hear me speak.
said
first-class
Open your eyes.
Moore, a
tickets to
former
Australia,
Listen to me please.
Ink Blot
please,”
There’s three words.
editor.
and
That are great.
“Getting
Moore
That are common.
their
read the
That are ambiguous.
feedback
piece at
will help
Thurs-
What three words?
me grow.
day’s Ink
A grand puzzle?”
I’m look-
Blot po-
— From a poem by Justen Noll
ing at
etry slam
becom-
contest
ing an
at Dallas
English teacher and get-
High. Ink Blot is the
ting that will help me grow
school’s popular literary
as a writer, therefore lead-
magazine, which holds ei-
ing to me being more ef-
ther an open mic night or
fective as a teacher in the
poetry slam in DHS’s “little
future.”
theater” every month.
Thurs-
“But
day’s
you are
event
not
“Even art, displayed
was
sorry,”
on an unholy pedestal,
short on
Moore
is a masterpiece.”
atten-
read, a
dance
sudden
— From “White Walls”
by Ashley Dupée
and par-
forceful-
ness in
ticipa-
her
tion —
voice. “And if you were, you which is not typical — but
would have called. You
heavy on artistic talent.
would have told me Merry
Many of the poems, like
Christmas or happy birth-
Moore’s, were intensely
day, but you didn’t and you
personal — all the more
won’t. But that’s OK be-
powerful because of the
cause I’ve
emo-
replaced
tions
you like
they
Oh, how I wish I could
you did
hinted
fly like those planes.
me.”
at.
Or at least join their
Baer
“Here’s
passengers on a journey to
and
the
your whispered promises.
Charlotte
strength
And, oh, I still remem-
Fisher,
of that
ber them all.
Ink Blot
poem,
interim
you have
And I remember all your
adviser
a lot of
weightless guarantees and
and also
really
your calloused feet.
a Dallas
personal
Pitterpatter they go
High
things in
across the barren lands
English
there
of Australia.
teacher,
that we
And I tell myself you’re
served as
can’t
sorry.
judges
know ex-
That I will never sit on
for the
actly
competi-
what you
your shoulders as you
tion, of-
mean,
guide me to lasso the
fering the
but the
comets in the sky.
young
beauty of
— From “Two first-class tickets
poets cri-
poetry is
to Australia, please”
tiques.
that it’s
by Emily Moore
They
ambigu-
playfully
ous,”
fought over who should
Baer said to Moore. “We
speak first after Moore’s
have to kind of guess at
reading. Fisher won.
what those things are and
we start to place our own
“It was so powerful,” she
understanding of what it
said. “It was very well done
means into it. That’s what
… all the way through. You
By Jolene Guzman
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JOLENE GUZMAN/ Itemizer-Observer
Philip North listens to a critique of his poem and performance. Critiques are a key part of the poetry contests.
JOLENE GUZMAN/Itemizer-Observer
Judges, and teachers, Charlotte Fisher, left, and Jeff
Baer, were impressed with the quality of the poetry
read Thursday, but still offered tips for young writers.
really good poetry does.”
As Thursday’s showing
demonstrated, there’s no
shortage of good poets
roaming the halls of Dallas
High School.
Fisher said poetry slams
are experiencing a resur-
gence in popularity, largely
due to people posting
videos on social media.
“It’s like we are beatniks
again,” said Shealyn Ihne,
Ink Blot’s club president.
“It’s trendy.”
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The event suffered from
a lack of advertisement and
only drew six competitors,
but usually there are
around 20 poets and 50
people in the audience,
Fisher said.
Ihne won the last poetry
slam and said reading her
poems in front of a crowd
has helped her grow as a
poet and person.
“It’s fantastic,” she said.
“It’s definitely good for self-
confidence and it’s nice to
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Drop Off
JOLENE GUZMAN/Itemizer-Observer
Shealyn Ihne and Ashley Dupée take in judges’ com-
ments after Dupée’s emotional reading of her poem
“White Walls” Thursday night at Dallas High School.
get feedback.”
Fisher said, in her opin-
ion, the criticism offered by
poerty slam contest judges
is a necessary part of the
event.
“These are people who
are serious about fine-tun-
ing their craft and I think it
would be a disservice not
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to give them that,” she said.
Ihne hopes the poetry
slams — originally suggest-
ed by last year’s adviser,
Erich Berg, in the spring —
will become a regular
event.
“This year, we really like
this, so we are trying to
keep doing it,” Ihne said.
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