The Poetry Out Loud county finals, sponsored by the San Benito County Arts Council at Anzar High School on Jan. 29, featured some drama as four finalists recited two poems each for a chance to become the county champion and advance to the state finals in Sacramento on Feb. 28 and 29. Students Ella Deamaral of Anzar High School and Hayleigh Smith of San Benito High School tied in the final round, leaving the audience stunned and forcing both students into a winner-take-all, head-to-head matchup.
Deamaral took first with her moving recitation of “Novel” by Arthur Rimbaud, despite Smith’s stunning recitation of the challenging poem “Nature, That Washed Her Hands in Milk” by Sir Walter Raleigh.
Deamaral will represent San Benito County in the state finals, with a chance to go all the way to Washington, D.C. for the national competition. The San Benito County Arts Council, which includes Executive Director Jennifer Laine and Program Manager Amanda Chiado, will attend to support Deamaral as she moves into the next round.
The competition, presented in partnership with San Benito High School and Aromas San Juan Unified School District, is part of a national program that encourages high school students to learn about great poetry through memorization, performance, and competition.
Over the past 10 years, Poetry Out Loud has reached nearly 3 million students, more than 9,500 schools, and thousands of teachers across the country. This year Poetry Out Loud took place in San Benito County for the first time with support from the California Arts Council, the National Endowment for the Arts, and the Poetry Foundation.
The California State champion will advance to the Poetry Out Loud National Finals on May 3-4, 2016 in Washington, D.C., where $50,000 in awards and school stipends will be distributed.
Lead teachers for Poetry Out Loud were Kristen Porter of SBHS and Tom Shea from Anzar, who also served as a charismatic emcee. Student musicians Jacob Fuentes and Trevor Williams also performed at the event, adding a great dimension of invigorating, original sound.
Participating students and their poems were:
Representing Anzar High School
Ella Deamaral
1. “Aria” David Barber
2. “Novel” Arthur Rimbaud
Ethan Woehrman
1. “In the Desert” Stephen Crane
2. “Jabberwocky” Lewis Carroll
Marvie Hill
1. “Sad Boy’s Sad Boy” Charles Bernstein
2. “The Paradox” Paul Laurence Dunbar
Ryan Grimshaw
1. “Sugar Dada” J. Allyn Rosser
2. “Big City Speech” W.S. Di Piero
Representing SBHS
Hayleigh Smith
1. “Peace Lilies” Cathy Smith Bowers
2. “Nature, That Washed Her Hands in Milk” Sir Walter Raleigh
Judges
Judge 1-Cesar Flores: Arts Council president, actor
Judge 2-Joe Navarro: Local Latino poet
Judge 3- Carol Swanson: Retired English teacher
Judge 4-Don Boys: San Juan Bautista Rotary president
Accuracy Judge: Rolan Resendiz
Prompter: Louise Roy