FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
February 6, 2012
CONTACT:
Lisa McVey, Communications & Community Relations Liaison, 610-869-2441, ext. 1019
AVON GROVE CROWNS WINNER IN FIRST-ANNUAL POETRY RECITATION CONTEST
Avon Grove High School hosted its first annual Poetry Out Loud recitation contest on Jan. 24, and senior Ariana Niehaus came away with the win for her recitation of e.e. cummings’ “[i carry your heart with me(i carry it in].”
Niehaus will advance to the regional level of the Poetry Out Loud National Recitation competition scheduled Feb. 18 at The University of the Arts in Philadelphia. For the regionals, Niehaus will recite the cummings poem and “Backdrop addresses cowboy” by Margaret Atwood. She must also memorize a third poem to recite in the event of a tie-breaker. She has selected “Enough” by Suzanne Buffam.
The top four spots in the Avon Grove competition were closely contested, with junior Julia Wright earning second place for her recitation of “The Layers” by Stanley Kunitz. Tenth-grader Kunal Lobo performed a booming rendition of Tennyson’s “The Charge of the Light Brigade,” earning a third-place finish. Richard Gardner, a junior, rounded out the top four with his rendition of William Ernest Henley’s “Invictus.”
A total of 24 students participated in the local competition. Each selected a poem from the roughly 700 titles listed on the poetryoutloud.org Web site. They were required to memorize the poem, interpret the meaning, and try to master inflection and enunciation.
Students performed their selected poems in front of a panel of judges and were scored based on physical presence, voice and articulation, dramatic appropriateness, level of the poem’s difficulty, evidence of understanding, and overall performance.
Participants selected a variety of poems to perform in the local competition dating from the 1600s to more contemporary works. The most popular were poems penned in the Victorian era. Twentieth-century American poet Robert Frost’s works were well represented. Six students performed poems by Frost.
Winner and runner-up Niehaus and Wright were awarded gift cards donated by members of the high school’s English Department. Lobo and Gardner received carved domino boxes donated by the Green Eyed Lady boutique in Kennett Square. In addition, the four finalists have been invited to perform at Avon Grove High School’s Tri-M Coffeehouse night on Feb. 16.
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