Super Heroes of Slam at Contact 5th February

If you ever thought poetry was boring, you've probably never seen slam poetry in action. With Contact Theatre and Commonword presenting the first heat of the North West Poetry Championship 2008, it is time to discover a whole new side to poetry...

First seen in Chicago in 1984, poetry slams are now so popular in America and Canada that they are sometimes held in sports stadiums. What makes a poetry slam different from a normal poetry reading is the competition element. Whereas in a normal reading or open mic night a certain number of poets will read their work to a captive audience, poetry slams pit the poets against each other in a timed battle.

All poets have an equal amount of time to perform in the first round (often just three to five minutes) and after each performance the audience or the judges award a score. At the end of the round the poets with the lowest scores are knocked out of the competition and the remaining poets move into the next round, where they have longer to perform. This continues until two poets finally go head-to-head.

Contact Theatre is the leading poetry slam venue in Manchester with both Apples and Snakes and local spoken word and music collective Speakeasy both regularly hosting events.  The Super Heroes of Slam is a comic book themed event featuring kitsch decor, onstage score charts, cheer/boo/laugh cards and red velvet curtains, as well as a funky DJ to keep the party going.

Tickets cost £5 (£3 concessions) and the event starts at 7.30pm. There are still spaces for poets wishing to perform - all styles of poetry and spoken word are welcome.