The Alpha Mu Xi chapter of Sigma Tau Delta, an international English honor society, hosted their second annual poetry slam in the Event Center on May 2.
The event featured original poems and a reading of a piece by the late Larry Levis, all recited by students, as well as a musical performance.
As stated on their website, the society of Sigma Tau Delta strives to “provide cultural stimulation on college campuses and promote interest in literature and the English language in surrounding communities.”
Poetry slams, which generally involve more expressive poetry, offer the campus a chance to help accomplish the goals the society works to achieve.
Frank Alanis, Vice President of Sigma Tau Delta, emceed the event and began the poetry slam with an introductory poem by Levis, who was a Central Valley native.
Alanis encouraged the poets to be expressive when speaking in order to “tap into the spirit of the art and writing” and “release the energy.”
Students followed Alanis in performing whimsical and heart-wrenching original poems.
The water fowl and ducks around the pond being the main subject of a poem kept the audience entertained while giving them a taste of this literary aspect.
Two different poems portrayed the spontaneity of the art: One was thrown together fifteen minutes prior to the event, and another was finished on the spot.
Harsh emotions mixed with personal experiences in an intimate setting revealed the pure essence of poetry in one of the last poems.
Heaven Lindsey-Burtch performed two original songs on her guitar. With ten years of experience under her belt, Lindsey-Burtch has performed with many local bands.
“Remember, lyrics are a good form of poetry,” Lindsey-Burtch (senior, English) said as she finished her performance.
The judges, including Noel Daniel, President of Sigma Tau Delta, evaluated each of the performances, allotting first, second and third place awards to the poets.
Preeti Chadha received the award for first place, Jaydeep Bhatia accepted second place and Angel Villagomez received the third place award.
The more intimate setting of the event “created a different environment which was still good,” Alanis said.
“The smaller environment is actually kind of helpful, brought down the nerves a little bit,” Alanis added. “In that sense it was really helpful.”
As the event finished and people parted ways, aspirations for next year’s slam were shared.
“I want to try to bring back some of the bigger slam poets, hopefully next year,” Daniel (senior, English) said. “Hopefully it can be a bi-annual slam.”