SLAMbassadors UK

Khadijah Ibrahiim, Artistic Director of Leeds Young Authors will run a SLAMbassadors workshop:

Friday 14th August, 11am – 2pm

Mandela Centre, Chapeltown Road, Leeds, LS7 3HY

We will be on hand to film your entry for the SLAMbassadors championship for the opportunity to win a workshop with Benjamin Zephaniah and Joelle Taylor and perform live at a prestigious London venue in November!

The workshop is limited so to book a place, email blast-leeds@bbc.co.uk

News just in!

The Shoreditch Trust will be collaborating with the Poetry Society in creating an astounding poetry/spoken word event to kick off their 5 day literature festival in the autumn. We can’t give any more details at the moment – except to say that STAR LIT have commissioned 5 SLAMbassadors to write original performance poems that they will perform at the opening night, alongside major UK poets like Michael Rosen.

This goes a little way toward proving the longevity and sustainability of the SLAMbassadors UK project. It is not about finding and nurturing new poets, then leaving them stuttering on an empty stage – but about our continued support, and continued cultural investment.

And a new generation are coming up! Watch the films over the summer and autumn in your school/youth club/library and select those that you want to win. Follow their progression through the ranks – until they finally hit the stage with tongues running on November 16th 2009.

Can’t think how to get involved? Email Joelle.

Got a poem but no camera? Again, email Joelle and she will film you!

So the first SLAMbassadors workshops have taken place attracting young people from far and wide. Even in the first few slam sessions, it’s clear that this is going to be a tough competition with entries of an incredibly high standard.  Don’t miss the opportunity to get involved with this year’s slam and the chance to win a workshop with Joelle Taylor and Benjamin Zephaniah.

Visit BBC Blast for the rules of slam and watch this space for details of our next workshop. If you need any help at all with your entry or can’t get to any of the workshops, please get in touch with us and we’ll see what we can do to help. Email us for assistance: jtaylor@poetrysociety.org.uk

Entries will be up on the Blast website soon!