Orange County School of the Arts, Creative Writing, OC RYSE

The Creative Writing Conservatory at the Orange County School of the Arts (OCSA) is again proud to host The Orange County Regional Youth Slam Event (OC RYSE), the only county-wide, youth poetry slam, this year across two days: Saturday, April  14th and Sunday, April 15th. We hope you will help inspire, guide, and organize student teams to compete in this artistic event.  

OC RYSE intends to increase poetry’s exposure to a broad public audience through engaging, dynamic performance of classic and original poems. High school-aged teams from schools, clubs, and home school environments are eligible. Team of up to seven students can compete, and up to two teams per school can register. Cash prizes will be awarded to the top teams.

The winning advisor will also receive a grant to implement arts and poetry curriculum at their school.

For each performance round, students choose a memorized classic poem from the OC RYSE poem bank. Then students craft an original response poem that echoes elements of the first. Students are judged equally on writing and performance aspects. The synthesis of proven academic examples and original artistic creations promises students and audiences a thrilling exploration of the immense range of poetry. These poems can also be integrated into class discussions regarding poetry and  furthering the writing and/or performance curriculum of your classroom.