Welcome to the official website for iWPS 2009. This is the one stop shop for all things iWPS! What do you get when you combine Poetry with Storytelling, Comedy, Dramatic Monologue, Battle Rap, Song, and Dance? You have Performance Poetry! What happens when these performers compete, judged by members of the audience? You get a Poetry Slam. And what elite final event remains after thousands of poets from across the globe compete for a year? You get the Individual World Poetry Slam 2009.
Ninety-six of the world's top performance poets representing slam venues from around the globe converge for three days of competition, electrifying audiences with their talents. Plus a fantastic array of free day events ANYONE can participate in! Come play with us in Berkeley, CA. Oct 8-10, 2009.
Open Mics, workshops, panel discussions, and side competitions are scheduled along with the main tournament. Popular themed events include: Head-2-Head Haiku, The Nerd Slam, the Diaspora open mic, as well as many others. Late-night events include the ever-popular Erotica reading, XXX Haiku, and Karaoke!
Preliminary competition, daytime workshops, themed open mics, and late-night events will be held in South Berkeley at the Starry Plough, La Pena Cultural Center, Café Valparaiso, and the The Long Haul Infoshop. Finals will be held at Wheeler Auditorium on the UC Berkeley campus. All our venues are all-ages and wheelchair accessible. We recommend Hotel Shattuck Plaza for our visitors from out of town. This is also where we will hold the official After Party and our Late LATE night events.
Tickets are no longer available online. Please purchase tickets at the door.
For press materials or interviews, for discount group ticket sales to schools and youth groups, to have some of our world-class poets visit your local classroom before or during IWPS, or to volunteer, please go to the Contacts page.
We recommend Hotel Shattuck Plaza for our out of town guests. We also recommend you pick up a free copy of the East Bay Express when you arrive, grab a brownie at Bakesale Betty's, and something bubbly at Trader Joe's. Keep checking our Festival Guide, as we'll soon have a full list of recommended local businesses and sights to see! If you're interested in helping, sponsoring, or just want to be a fly on the wall, send an email to: voluptuary @ hotmail. com. For Press Materials and interviews, please contact: cbundy711 @ gmail .com
Our partners currently include these fine organizations: Berkeley Poetry Slam, Cal Slam, Epic Arts, Lyrical Minded, Poetry Flash, Poetry For The People, Youth Speaks, and many regular Bay Area slams!
