First Poetry Slam Ends in Success

Emily Wagner

On Wednesday, Sept. 30, Bel Air High school hosted its first Poetry Slam of the year. It was a huge success for both the performers and the audience.

The night started out with an “open mic” which featured performances by Lexi O’Donnel, Canvas, Alex Gaisor, Mo Tacka, The Average, Sam Cranford, and Ben Rynes. Many of the artists performed covers of popular songs, while others performed their own original work. This work consisted of songs and poems, and even jokes created by the artist themselves.

Lead guitarist of Canvas, Shawn Drinan, said, “Yeah, we played “Say it Aint So” by Weezer. I think it went pretty well.”

After the open-mic portion of the night came to a close, the second half of the night began: The “Poetry Slam.” The participants included August Napolitano, Mary Talbard, and Andrew Kovaleski. Audience members were chosen randomly to judge the poems performed by the poets.

August Napolitano was crowned the winner of the first poetry slam. “The scores were super close. Mary did a great job, especially for her first slam. She has a great chance of beating me next time. Everyone was super cool, it takes a lot of confidence to get up and perform,” commented Napolitano.

Overall, both the Open Mic and Poetry Slam were a huge success, and Bobcats are encouraged to return for the next event, Dec. 2 in the black box theater at 6 P.M.