The first Booming Voices poetry event goes down a metaphoric treat!
21 June 2023
Worcester Theatres was delighted to announce the end of their first year running the Booming Voices Project. The project concluded with participating schools taking to the Swan Theatre stage and sharing the incredible work they had created. The event also included a Poetry Slam Competition, which was thoroughly enjoyed by everyone who took part.
The Booming Voices Project was a 10-week programme that sent the Worcester Theatres Outreach team into 5 different schools, with the aim of providing young people with the opportunity and skills to explore Poetry. The project was aimed at students in years 5 and 9 and was designed to break down any preconceived notions students might have about poetry as well as giving them the chance to express themselves through it. Booming Voices was split into two phases, the first focused on the skills students would need to create a piece of poetry, such as understanding themes, vocabulary, structure and Rhyming Schemes; and the second focused on performing poetry. Every school created a group performance working from a piece of poetry that was written by their students, and in their sessions they learned skills that would enhance their pieces and help bring the poems to life. The two phases culminated in a piece of work that was then performed at the Swan theatre for the Booming Voices Showcase.
During the Showcase not only did students get a chance to perform what they had created, they also took part in workshops run by Worcester Cathedral and either watched or participated in the Slam Poetry competition. Worcester, Ledbury and Hereford Poetry Slam Champion Aaron Corbett performed on the day, as well as Worcester Poet Laureate finalist Freddie Barker, giving the children an opportunity to witness different styles of poetry and performance. Congratulations went to the first ever winner of the Booming Voices Poetry Slam Competition Natalie Anderson, from New College Worcester.
Worcester Theatres were thrilled to have so many schools participating in the first Booming Voices project, including Perry Wood Primary, Riversides School, New College Worcester, Baxter College and Christopher Whitehead Language College.
Aaron Corbett, Outreach and Participation Officer and Booming Voices Project Lead, said
“When myself and Owen (Creative Producer & Young Rep Artistic Director at Worcester Theatres) first sat down to plan the Booming Voices project, I couldn’t have imagined how well it would turn out. The project originally intended to engage only a handful of students from each class, but it gradually turned into a project the whole group could work on together, and I’m so happy that it did. Seeing young people engage with poetry in the first place was a win, but watching them invest themselves into their writing and taking real ownership of their poems was a pleasure to witness. Throughout the event I saw lots of smiling faces, even from young people who had told me they could never perform on a stage, and it was great to see them go out there and prove themselves wrong. Introducing them to Poetry Slams and seeing how supportive they were of each other, whether it was someone from their school or not, was awe-inspiring. I can’t wait to give young people this opportunity again in the future.”
The Outreach team at Worcester Theatres went on to thank the Eveson Trust for funding the project and helping them offer this opportunity to the young people of Worcestershire. They hope to make this an annual project and want to encourage even more schools to take part in this worthwhile programme that has young people at its core - we look forward to seeing what comes next!
For more information about the project please email [email protected]