Spoken Word

The Spoken Word Mentorship program will bring together a group of six youth who are interested in exploring the art of performance poetry. Together, they will work with three professional mentors who are leaders in Vancouver’s Spoken Word community: Barbara Adler, Brendan McLeod, and RC Weslowski. Through a series of one-on-one sessions, the mentors will lead the participants through the process of creating poetry that is intended for the stage.

Along the way the participants will also meet with some of the city’s top arts administrators and industry professionals for skill building workshops in areas such as media relations and grant writing. These workshops are specifically designed to assist young artists who want to pursue a career in the arts.

The program culminates in a showcase at The Cultch, one of Canada’s premiere performing arts venues. The mentors will work with the participants to bring a collaborative work to the Cultch’s stage. The content and nature of this performance is entirely up to the group of youth involved in the program.

The application deadline is January 15th, 2012. It is free to apply. Participants are chosen in early-January by a jury made up of the mentors, The Cultch’s Youth Program Manager,  and members of the IGNITE! Youth Panel.  For Full application details, please click here.