Capital Slam semi-finals, don't forget the organizers

3 - 2 - 1 - Raise It!

That's the tradition at Capital Slam: fist up, countdown, 3-2-1, and the audience shouts "Raise It", giving support to the poet who is just about to perform.

That's part of the atmosphere a Slam night, part of the interaction between the audience and the poetry on stage. That's the power of live performance, the little specificity of live poetry, of spoken word, compared to the book of poetry you can sip slowly sitting on the grass. That's the power of slam and all the little details that keep the night alive in addition to the poetic juice that is delivered.

So just a couple of pictures as an overview of some details from the Semi-finals of Capital Slam.

Because a slam night, it's also the host for the night, Nathanaël Larochette in this case, introducing poets and gathering the scores from the audience. That's an official, doing the maths from the gathered scores, keeping an eye on the time since each poet is only allowed 3 minutes; Ruthanne Edward is perfect for the job, long-time slam organizer with Rusty Priske. That's also a DJ who provides musical atmosphere, a string of beats and tunes to keep the party going in all situations, and DJ Cosmo offered some nice musical moments last week.

Capital Slam, it's a team - a group of poets but also a team of organizers...

Nathanaël Larochette (host) - Rusty Priske & Ruthanne Edwards (organizers)

Before the start of the slam...

Nathanaël Larochette & DJ Cosmo

May, 7th, 2011 - Capital Slam Semi-finals - Alumni Auditorium of the University of Ottawa

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