Utah finals for Poetry Out Loud to be held on March 13 in Salt Lake

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Utah Arts & Museums just announced information about the state finals for Poetry Out Loud, the national poetry recitation competition.

The state finals will be held on March 13 at 7 p.m. at the Black Box Theatre in the Rose Wagner Performing Arts Center.

The champion will go to Washington, D.C. in May to represent Utah in the national finals. The winner receives a $20,000 scholarship. More than 1,800 students from nearly 20 high schools around the state participated in the Poetry Out Loud curriculum and participated in preliminary competitions.

At the Black Box Theatre, finalists will recite works they selected from an anthology of nearly 600 classic and contemporary poems. Currently, students from these schools will compete in the state finals: Bountiful High SchoolBox Elder High School (Brigham City)East High School (Salt Lake City)Gunnison Valley High SchoolHerriman High SchoolJudge Memorial Catholic High School (Salt Lake City)Karl G. Maeser Preparatory Academy (Lindon)Layton High SchoolLogan High SchoolManti High SchoolMerit College Preparatory Academy (Springville)Monticello High SchoolNavigator Pointe Academy (West Jordan)North Sanpete High School (Mount Pleasant)Provo High SchoolRowland Hall–St. Mark's High School (Salt Lake City)Syracuse High School "These talented teens who engage in Poetry Out Loud relate to the poetry on a personal level and hone their public-speaking skills," said Margaret Hunt, Utah Arts & Museums Director, in a press release. "The final state competition is a very exciting evening, and for the past several years the state champion has also honored us with a recitation at the Mountain West Arts Conference/Governor's Leadership in the Arts Awards." Utah has had three finalists in the national top ten. One finalist received a $5,000 scholarship award and was contacted by noted Beat poet Lawrence Ferlinghetti to congratulate her on her recitation of his poem, "I Am Waiting." Poetry Out Loud is presented in partnership with the National Endowment for the Arts and the Poetry Foundation. The Poetry Out Loud Utah state finals event is free and open to the public. For more information, visit Utah Arts & Museums at http://www.artsandmuseums.utah.gov.