Toronto poets slam it big By Joseph Daly TORONTO (CUP) - If you can imagine an atmosphere somewhere between a WWF crowd and amateur night at the leg- endary Apollo Theatre, then you’ve prepared yourself for a poetry “slam,” Jeers, trash talking and loud, boisterous approval from the audience are the norm as seasoned and amateur poets square off with Continued from 2 also encouraging students to attend the “night of celebra- tion” DJ gig held later in the And on Vancouver Island, more than 1,000 students from the University of Victoria (UVic) and Camosun College gathered in front of the provincial legis- lature waving placards. “Let's ‘|be fair, the money is there, spend the surplus now,” they chanted along with the radical cheerleaders, a group of stu- Lakeside Residential ppewa@ Summer Camp Jobs in the U.S.A. Visas Arranged Counselors: Combined chidcaretteaching, Must be able to teach or lead one or Service Workers: Maintenance, taundry, office, kitchen. Non-smokers. June 18 to August 24. Attractive salary (US) plus travel allowance. Westwood, Massachusetts, 02090-0340, U.S.A. ac.net | tel: 781-762-8294 | fax: 781-255-7167 their best lyrical work. Rather than a mere competition between poets, a slam is more like a battle between poetic warriors. The scene of the battle is usually a dark, intimate cof- feehouse or concert hall with the smell of incense and cigarette smoke wafting through the air. Nothing is off limits. Poems of love are juxtaposed with poems of rage and revolution. made out garbage bags. Earlier in the day, between 8 a.m. and 11:30 a.m., about 200 studenis from UVic barri- caded entrances to the University campus. In the afternoon, the protest moved from the cam- pus grounds to the legisla- ture. “I think education should be free and at least more accessible than it is right now,” said Kim McKay, and a third-year English student at UVic protesting in front of the legislature. Girls Camp in Maine dents who waved pom-poms Each performer is given a maximum of three minutes to recite their best poetry. If they go over time they are disqual- ified. Judges in the audience give each poet a score out of 10, and yell the scores in front of everyone - “5.8!” “9.9!” “4.6!” At the end of the night the poet with the best score out of 30 wins. At the end of the year the winner of each slam competes in a final lyri- cal throwdown to determine the champion. This type of competition has been a mainstay of the American poetry scene since the ‘60s. Dwayne Morgan is the organizer of this slam at the Roots Lounge. He’s the founder of Up From the Roots, a youth group that organizes enter- tainment and social programs throughout greater Toronto. At 25, Morgan has published three books of poetry and issued a music cassette with a jazzy hip hop style. Morgan says he started these slams to serve as a stepping stone for poets in Toronto. “There aren’t many outlets for young writers, especially young black writ- ers,” he said. “This is a good opportunity for those who write to share their work with a supportive audience.” Pi Beta Phi Plays Cupid for Valentine’s Day Hi Everybody! We've got lots of fun stuff planned for Valentine’s Day and _ the upcoming month, so keep an eye out for us in the hall or come by the office (located in the clubs office alongside the Wintergarden) to join in on all of the fun. First and foremost, the Millennium Formal Dance, presented by NRS and Pi Beta Phi on January 14th, was a huge success and a lot of fun. (Pam had a hot date). Thanks to all who attended to bring in the year 2000 with style! Well lovers, Valentine’s Day is coming up on Monday February the 14th. All this week, we'll have a table set up and will be selling carna- Three Lines Free To Jumbo. Too much cholesterol is BAD! Stop being a dink! To everyone who hates my hat; | don’t care what anyone says, | like my hat. It’s blue and ugly and | like it. -Ugly Hat Girl All the world’s a stage and sometimes | feel’ like | have fallen off into the orchestra pit and | can’t get back on no matter how hard I try. Thanks for parking so CLOSE next time leave a f#$king can opener so | can get my Car out A$$HOLES like you should ride the bus. The world turns and | have one more paper due. To the hobo who stole my glass pot, | want MY POT BACK! Keep the stew, But, gimme the lid back. To that guy who made us do work at the last minute, ya, you know who you are, and we know where you live sleep well. Thanks to the women’s centre for providing the great music on produciton night, it made things much more bareable. tions and candy-grams; ordering begins on Monday, February 7th and ends on Friday, February 11th. Once your order is confirmed, you are able to pick it up on the 14th to give to your sweet- heart on Valentine’s Day! So, if you want to surprise your valentine ... or maybe try to score a valentine... get your orders in by the 11th! Friday, February 11th is also the day of our Dating Game! Come by the Wintergarden between 12:00 and 4:00 to check it out. This event is a great way to meet new peo- ple, and it’s a lot of fun. On Monday the 14th, we're holding the Valentine’s Bake Sale. So, if you miss out on the odering of carnations of Who called? Just press ¥69 to ste the last number that called you. Try Call Return today. Just 75¢ per use. candy-grams, you can at least surprise your special some one with one of our sweet home baked goodies! ‘Looking ahead, March 21st is our Bachelor Auction. We're still looking for volunteers , so any of you boys who think that you’re worth some money and who don’t mind being auctioned off in front of a wild audience, come by the office and ask for Kelsey. ASAP. Well everybody, Ill sign off for now. Keep your eyes and ears open there’s a lot of fun coming up in the next few months! We'll see during Valentine’s Week! Tilda Heenan in abe Gost for thin sarvice ix Te par unk, io 2 asin af SOE Ber minntty ior residuntis! cuatomars,