Spoken Word to GoGo | Round 1

Name: Spoken Word to GoGo | Round 1
Start: 2023-05-04T19:00:00-04:00
End: 2023-05-04T21:00:00-04:00
Location: Anacostia

Date and Time

May 4, 2023 7:00 pm

Location

Anacostia

2004 Martin Luther King Jr Ave SE, Washington, District of Columbia, 20020

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Description:

The Spoken word is a literary and performance art in which lyrics, poetry, sketches, or stories are spoken instead of sung. This time we take the words and SPEAK them to music. The official music of DC – GoGo!

Do you have what it takes to perform your Spoken Word piece “In The Pocket”?

The winner of the Spoken Word to GoGo Competition will receive $1000, a studio session with The Experience Band & Show, the title of DC’s 2023 “Spoken Word to GoGo Champion,” and a trophy presented by the Office of Cable, Television, Film, Movies, and Entertainment

Here’s how to get there:

ROUND 1:LIVE AUDITIONS

Thursday, May 4, 2023 , 7pm – 9pm | Busboys and Poets Anacostia

You perform a Spoken Word piece to your selected GoGo instrumental track LIVE at Busboys and Poets Anacostia to judges that hail from the world of Spoken Word and GoGo and the audience there to cheer you on. The top 10 will move on to Round 2.
This is an opportunity for poetry and gogo lovers to enjoy the competitive art of late-night performance poetry!

ROUND 2: ONLINE VOTING

May 6, 2023 - May 14, 2023 | Virtual

Your Spoken Word to GoGo video performance is shared online and voted on by judges, friends, family, and fans! The voting will close on Sunday, May 14th 2023, at 11:59pm. After that, the top 5 will move on to Round 3.

ROUND 3 : SEMIFINAL

Saturday, May 20th, 2023|
Anacostia River Festival

The Top 5 Spoken Word artists will perform on the RiverFestival stage in Anacostia Park, LIVE, with a band to back them up. The judges have the final call on this one! After that, the top 3 will move on to Round 4.

ROUND 4 : FINALS

Saturday, June 24th, 2023 | 31^st Annual Giant Barbecue Battle https://bbqindc.com/

The top 3 Spoken Word artists will perform on the 31st Annual Giant Barbecue Battle stage on Historic Pennsylvania Ave LIVE, with a band to back them up. The judges will declare a winner!

COMPETITORS

Read all the rules BEFORE crafting your audition piece, and don’t forget to select your music from one of the original Spoken Word To Go-Go Beats (found here:)

https://anacostiabid.org/swgg-2023-tracks

and

SUBMIT YOUR ONLINE APPLICATION FORM!

PERFORMANCE RULES

Each poem must be of the poet’s own construction alongside a pre-selected gogo track.
Each poet gets 3 minutes 30 seconds (plus a ten-second grace period) to read one poem; if the poet goes over, points will be deducted from the total score.
The judges will then score the pieces anywhere from 0.0 to 10.0, evaluating such qualities as PERFORMANCE, CONTENT and ORIGINALITY. The high and low scores of each performance are tossed and the middle three are added giving the performer their score. A poet’s time begins as soon as they say anything on stage or engage the audience in any way.
The poet may NOT use props, costumes, or musical instruments. This includes the removal of clothing.
The poem can only be performed by one person.
Poets ARE allowed to read from paper and electronic devices such as laptops or cell phones. There will be no point penalty assessed unless it’s used as a PROP (as outlined above).
The poet with the most points wins the slam
Use of profanity is not permitted.

HOUSE RULES

Please remember to turn off your devices.
Respect the mic, but most of all respect the person that is at the microphone. Give them your attention, it may be someone’s first time, or they may be getting very vulnerable. The only time you can make noise is if it’s to show a lot of love to the person on stage in agreement with their poem. We are in an interactive space: you can clap, snap, yell hallelujah, but of course be respectful in your exuberance!
We do not censor our stages, but still reserve the right to dispel anyone from the stage at the Host’s discretion if the space is made unsafe at any point.
Last but not least, have a whole lot of fun!!!