Last month, HCC Ybor City Campus held an entire week of events all themed after “Beauty.”

  On Tuesday, Jan. 14, I attended my very first spoken word poetry event, and I was captivated to learn how many art students, faculty (from other schools), and even local poets had tossed their hats in the ring. At first I was skeptical, thinking, “Some students wrote up a poem in their last class for a hope at some prize money, right?” Nope. Wrong.

  One student near the end had decided she was so inspired that she would improvise a poem on the spot without being a competitor. This doesn’t mean that everyone who performed was great, but they did perform.

  Mark Eerie, president of the GaYbor District Coalition and real estate broker in Tampa, Arielle Gunn, the Academics Success Center Coordinator. Angela Walters, HCC Marketing Manager and SGA senator Anubia Lewis served as judges for the event.

  The judges scored the contestants based on level of difficulty, articulation, appropriateness, understanding of subject, and overall performance.

  Each poem had to be completely original and less than 5 minutes long. The audience was urged to cheer and to boo, which was refreshing.

  Before the poets began, the audience was treated to a dance number by the Orange Grove Middle School Dancers, Image De Soi.

  The choreography was based completely on improvisation. “My Baby Shot Me Down” (Bang-Bang) played over a deep-red backdrop as a dim spotlight ran above two pairs of dancers. Dramatic and tenacious, I was somewhat unsettled but was eventually drawn in. The Orange Grove students gave a sinister, yet graceful and careful performance.

  I learned the message, as Orange Grove Middle School Principal Michael Finklestien introduced himself as the ‘Sacrificial Poet;’ A martyr in the attempt that the first competitor will not be stuck down for being the first to perform.

  A young up-and-comer named Christmad performed passionately and informed me that he was inspired to write his poetry by Christ and the church. He dedicated his poem on women as an alternative to the majority of hip-hop stars who speak in their songs of the degradation of women.

  The poetry slam was a show full of emotional beauty. Winners and losers weren’t the subject, but beauty through the spoken word had been what everyone had concentrated on throughout.

  In the end, I was reminded that it was a competition.

  The winners included Wanda Pressley, Honorable Mention; John Sodan, Third Place: Wally B. Clark, Second Place: and Dayton Kelly, First Place.