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“When Brothers Speak Ottawa” – University of Ottawa Alumni Auditorium, November 5th

We are back, for the 2nd year in a row; Ottawa, prepare yourselves for another stellar When Brothers Speak show!

When Brothers Speak is the largest annual event of its kind in North America, and this year we will continue that trend, as we offer up performances from:

2010 World Poetry Slam Champion, Ottawa’s Ian Keteku, Buffalo’s Ntare Ali Gault, Ottawa’s Poetic Speed, Cali’s Andrew Tyree, Ottawa’s Ritallin, and Buffalo’s Q-Boogie, all hosted by yours truly, Dwayne Morgan!

Tickets for the show are $20 in advance, and started selling on Monday at:

BYWARD MARKET
Norml Clothing
184 Rideau Street
(613) 562-2043

CENTRETOWN
Compact Music
190 Bank Street
(613) 233-7626

GLEBE
Compact Music
785 1/2 Bank Street
(613) 233-8922

or by email money transfer to info@upfromtheroots.ca

When Brothers Speak will take place inside of the University of Ottawa Alumni Auditorium, 85 University Street

For info: info@upfromtheroots.ca, 647.284.9135, or www.twitter.com/dwayne_morgan

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CFSW 2010 Ottawa – Francophone Showcase

Élise Gauthier (poet, actor, director) attended the first evening of performances at the Canadian Festival of Spoken Word.

The following poem is her reaction to the evening’s festivities, illustrating the range of emotions, reactions one undergoes at a slam poetry event.

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Ottawa Tonite is the Canadian Festival of Spoken Word’s official media sponsor.

Check back for updates, blog entries, photos, and videos until Saturday, October 16. For more information, please visit www.cfsw.ca

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CFSW 2010 Ottawa opens TONIGHT!

The Canadian Festival of Spoken Word (CFSW 2010 Ottawa www.cfsw.ca) kicked off this afternoon to a fiery start with the Last Chance Slam to determine the members of the Wild Card Team to compete alongside 17 other teams at the festival.

The members of the team that will be performing at the festival are Ottawa poets Faye Estrella, Brad Morden, and Sean O’Gorman, as well as Vancouver poet Steve Miller. The team has two alternates: Ottawa’s Jenna Tenn-Yuk and Vancouver’s Tristan de Plume.

CFSW 2010 Ottawa returns to the capital for the first time since its inception in 2004 with the largest slam-focused spoken word event in Canadian history. From October 12 to 16, 2010, Ottawa will be treated to a wide-ranging display of Canadian slam poetry and spoken word featuring over 100 of the best spoken word poets on 18 teams from 15 communities across Canada.

The Canadian Festival of Spoken Word takes place in numerous venues in downtown Ottawa.

For more information, please call the CFSW 2010 Ottawa hotline 613 301 8648, email info@cfsw.ca, or visit www.cfsw.ca.

SCHEDULE OF EVENTS:

Tuesday, October 12

University of Ottawa Tabaret Hall – 550 Cumberland St.
1 – 3 p.m.
Last Chance Slam (to determine the Wild Card team)
7 – 9 p.m.
Festival Opening Celebration & Francophone Showcase
Hosted by Mehdi Hamdad | Featuring Ivy, Marjolaine Beauchamp,
D-Track & Sophie Jeukens
9 – 10:30 p.m.
Bout 1 – National Slam Championship Preliminary Round
Victoria, Lanark County, Winnipeg, Ottawa Urban Legends

Wednesday, October 13

Cartier Place Suite Hotel – 180 Cooper Street
1 – 2:30 p.m.
Intro to Poetry Writing (for Youth) Workshop
Facilitated by Ian Keteku
2:30 – 4 p.m.
Activism in Spoken Word Workshop

4 – 5:30 p.m.
Youth Showcase Hosted by Dwayne Morgan

Ottawa Little Theatre – 400 King Edward Avenue
7 – 8:30 p.m.
Bout 2 – National Slam Championship Preliminary Round
Calgary, Ottawa Urban Legends, London, Toronto Poetry Slam
9 – 10:30 p.m.
Bout 3 – National Slam Championship Preliminary Round
Vancouver, Guelph, Peterborough, Halifax

University of Ottawa Alumni Auditorium – 85 University Street
7 – 8:30 p.m.
Bout 4 – National Slam Championship Preliminary Round
Burlington, Edmonton, Wild Card, Toronto Up From the Roots
9 – 10:30 p.m.
Bout 5 – National Slam Championship Preliminary Round
Lanark County, Ottawa Capital Slam, Montreal, Saskatoon

Hooley’s Pub – 292 Elgin Street
11 p.m.
Poetry & Music Cabaret
Featuring Scruffmouth & Moe Clark

Thursday, October 14

Cartier Place Suite Hotel – 180 Cooper Street
1 – 2:30 p.m.
Sankofa: A Poet’s Contract (Workshop)
Facilitated by Scruffmouth
2:30 – 4 p.m.
Connecting with Arts Organizations Panel Discussion
Facilitated by David Silverberg
4 – 5:30 p.m.
Steve Sauvé Memorial Nerd Showcase
Hosted by Festrell|Featuring Nadine Thornhill & Bart Cormier

Courtyard by Marriott Ottawa – Laurier Room, 350 Dalhousie Street
7 – 8:30 p.m.
Bout 6 – National Slam Championship Preliminary Round
Halifax, Winnipeg, Burlington, Ottawa Capital Slam
9 – 10:30 p.m.
Bout 7 – National Slam Championship Preliminary Round
Toronto Poetry Slam, Saskatoon, Edmonton, Vancouver

The Velvet Room – 62 York Street
7 – 8:30 p.m.
Bout 8 – National Slam Championship Preliminary Round
Montreal, London, Guelph, Wild Card
9 – 10:30 p.m.
Bout 9 – National Slam Championship Preliminary Round
Toronto Up From the Roots, Peterborough, Calgary, Victoria

Friday, October 15

Streets of Downtown Ottawa
3 – 5:30 p.m.
Guerrilla Poetry
Poets take to the streets to perform random acts of poetry

Ottawa Technical High School Auditorium – 440 Albert Street
7 – 8:30 p.m.
National Slam Championship Semi-Final #1
9 – 10:30 p.m.
National Slam Championship Semi-Final #2

Ritual Nightclub – 137 Besserer Street
11 p.m.
Kobo Town and John Carroll & the Epic Proportions

Saturday, October 16

Cartier Place Suite Hotel – 180 Cooper Street
1 – 2:30 p.m.
Poetry Slam in Schools Workshop
Facilitated by Danielle K.L. Grégoire & Lara Bozabalian
2:30 – 4 p.m.
Self-Promotion in the Digital Age (for Artists) Workshop
Facilitated by Kate Leadbeater – bilingual event
4-5:30 p.m.
Poetry and Music Showcase
Featuring Red Slam Collective

Dominion-Chalmers United Church – 355 Cooper Street
7-9 p.m.
Poets of Honour & Closing Festival Showcase
Featuring Anthony Bansfield ‘the nth digri’ & Shauntay Grant
9-11 p.m.
National Slam Championship Finals

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Ottawa’s Lumière Festival will leave you feeling “light on your feet”

Ottawa’s New Edinburgh Park hosts the much-anticipated official start of the Lumière Festival this evening! The spoken word curator for the festival is Jessica Ruano. I wanted to know more about the spoken word aspect of the event, and Jessica’s response was to send me an incredible poem that touches on the theme assigned to participants in the festival.

segments

single out

each particular moment in time

sitting in a sweet coffee shop

waiting for company

drinking tea

time for a change

back to remembering

i can keep my nails sharp for awhile

if you like

it’s no trouble

it’s no concern of yours if i have trouble

walking at your running pace

that’s what bicycles are for

until we get too old to peddle

what then? what now?

i’m lost until the fall

until i start flying again

i found wings once

and now you

Jessica Ruano:

“We were told to write about ascension, heavenly bliss, reaching toward a state of perfection, as the poets will be stationed in that section of the tour that is, essentially, an exploration of death, the underworld, afterlife, and rebirth. Some poets already had poems that fit the bill; others are writing brand new ones. Either way, each one should be a little gem of a performance.”

As the festival site indicates, there has been a full month of preparation for the Evening of Light Celebration happening tonight -  September 4th.

There are lantern-making and performance workshops, and community outreach initiatives designed to bring people together to celebrate “light” and community. What does that really mean for participants?

“What can I say about the festival? From what I understand, it is designed to be a celebration of light in all its forms. Literally, from the lanterns that will cover the entire park, with a beautiful glow reflected along the river…to the celebration of illuminating artistic genres: poetry, dance, theatre, storytelling, and visual art installations.”

Poets participating in the festival’s spoken word tour (all from the Ottawa/Gatineau region) are:

Mehdi Hamdad
Brad Morden
Ian Keteku
Faye Estrella
Mélanie Rivet
Graeme O’Farrell

This will prove to be a very illuminating community experience, and will indeed leave you feeling “light on your feet” with the magic of the night.

Photo courtesy to Fernando Farfan: http://www.flickr.com/photos/farfando/

Artists participating in the 2010 festival are listed here: http://lumiereottawa.com/artists/

More from Jessica Ruano can be found on her blog:  The Most Exquisite Moments

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Canadian Festival of Spoken Word 2010

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