Poetry Reading: Another Successful Event
February 10, 2010 • Ryan Jurewicz, Staff Writer
Filed under A&E
On November 19, Rockville High School’s library was transformed into an arena in which poetry owned the stage. This year’s fall poetry reading was an exceptional event, and many young poets expressed their love and talent for writing through poetry.
The night began with the group of poets, all dressed in black and purple, taking turns reading a poem that was collaboratively written. “The Rock of Creativity” was the theme, allowing the poets to virtually write about anything. Seniors were privileged in reading three poems each. Juniors were allowed two, while underclassmen were allowed to read one poem each. All of the readers seemed very excited and certainly expressed themselves well.
Still, the poets were a little nervous before the big event.
“I’m definitely excited, [but] nervous I might forget one of my lines,” said senior Mike Stankiewicz. In any case, Stankiewicz’s performance of his three poems Destitute, All Saints’ Eve, and Deadweight was well spoken. All nervousness was shaken off and a great performance took place.
As a matter of fact, nearly every seat in the library was filled. According to Anne Whitehead, a senior who took part in the poetry reading, the night was very successful “There was a major turn out; Mr. Baim was there, and there were a lot of readers,” says Whitehead.
Also, the number of people who went to the reading was expected to be significantly lower. When asked if she expected so many viewers, Jamie Ehrenfeld said, “Not really. We had to add more chairs!”
Last year, I was given the opportunity to be a part of the poetry reading, and the turnout wasn’t nearly as good. Listening to the audience this year, I could even hear the occasional gasp of excitement, or an inspired person whispering a “wow” into the air as if they were really connecting to the readers. Perhaps what grabbed the audience’s attention was the fact that every reader had their own style of connecting to the audience. Each poet was different, and the variety was truly impressive.
Undoubtedly, receiving a reaction like that can be extremely hard. A poet needs inspiration to write about, and the poets who took part in the poetry reading definitely had some interesting muses. Austin West, a senior in the reading, says that the “natural environment” inspires him. Upon listening to his poem On M.C. Escher’s “Rippled Surface,” one can distinctively hear the many descriptive passages about the environment. Dylan Arcelli, a senior at Rockville, says “music and honesty” inspire him. Apart from many of the poets, Arcelli took a lyrical style in his performance. His poem Bright Lights and Gunshots was read in the form of rap and showed his interest in rhythm and rhyme.
Additionally, even people can cause for some good inspiration. When asked what influences his style of writing, Patrick Crane stated, “What I see in the world around me as well as the people I love, hate, and live with.”
In all, the poetry reading was a successful event. Joe Philbrick, a member of the audience, said, “I thought it was a complete success. It was entertaining and inspiring.”
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