This year, St. George’s will debut as an official participant in the Canada-wide Poetry in Voice recitation contest. Approximately half of the school’s student body will participate, and many boys have already begun choosing and memorizing respected pieces of literature. The tournament recognizes students upon their ability to recite with emotion and authenticity the works of great poets, past and present.
The contest begins within our walls, wherein students of all grades compete in their respective English classes. Participating classes follow a strict evaluation rubric and select a class champion. In mid-February, a group of approximately 15 finalists will compete in the school finals before a larger audience in the Saints auditorium. A panel of judges will select one victor to compete in the online national semifinals in mid-March. Our school’s champion will be required to prepare and submit a video recording of his recitations, which will be judged in Ontario. Nine speakers are selected to represent their schools at the live Finals competition in the nation’s capital. There, the finalists may compete in one of three streams, English, French, or bilingual, and they are required to perform three recitations. The speaker who receives the greatest combined score between his three performances within his language stream takes home a grand prize of $5000 dollars and an additional $1000 for his school library.
Class contests are already underway. Students in all grades have been vigorously memorizing their pieces, practicing in front of one another and for the camera. Calen Falconer-Bayard, grade 11, even admitted to reciting his poem aloud while walking to and from the school.
The English department is certain that Poetry in Voice will bestow our community with greater enthusiasm and appreciation of poetry, as well as further enrich the school’s practice of language and the Arts. Whether it’s the works of William Shakespeare or William Butler Yeats, expect to hear a lot more poetry in the coming months.
