By Zach Rosenberg
Staff Writer
Mira Costa junior Annika Hanson will advance to the Los Angeles County competition after winning Costa’s annual Poetry Out Loud competition on Jan. 19 in the small theater.
Poetry Out Loud is a competition open to all Costa students who wish to display their public speaking skills and recite poems. This competition gives many students their first opportunity to express what they love doing and surprise the audience with their talents, Mira Costa Principal Dr. Ben Dale said.
“I’m blown away by the talent of a kid who I don’t know,” Dale said. “I love when a new student gets up and does something amazing that no one expected. It’s pretty cool.”
Photos: Students perform in Poetry Out Loud
Hanson finished first after her performance of “Movement Song,” by Audre Lord, and “September, 1918,” by Amy Lowell.
Senior Anthony Olivas got second, performing “A Boat Beneath a Sunny Sky,” by Lewis Carroll, and “Holy Sonnets: Death, be not proud,” by John Donne. Junior Katherine Elias got third, performing “Personal,” by Tony Hoagland, and “To David, About His Education,” by Howard Nemerov.
“Poetry is a passion of mine, so I’m excited I won this year, and I’m looking forward to the county competition coming up,” Hanson said.
Video: Sophomore Jamie Stickelmaier performs her poem at the annual Poetry Out Loud competition. The songs the performers chose to perform were all their own choices as they all had a reason they recited it.
Approximately 35 people attended the competition in addition to the Manhattan Beach Poetry Circle, a group of senior citizens that meets in the Joslyn Center to read poetry aloud.
“I think it’s cool to have a few friends competing, and it is a good way for everyone to express what they are thinking and display an art form that they really love,” Costa junior Alyssa Castronuovo said.
The Poetry Out Loud official website.
The judges of the competition included Costa English teachers Shawn Chen, Maddie Hutchinson and Shannon Vaughan.
Mira Costa Poetry Out Loud Info: http://www.miracostahigh.org/apps/events/2015/12/10/2412924/?id=0
“I participated in Poetry Out Loud because I wanted to step out of my comfort zone and try something new,” Costa sophomore Jamie Stickelmaier said. “I think poetry is one of the purest forms of self-expression.”
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