[August 2, 6P] A multi-stop poetry stroll through the Upstreet Cultural District of Downtown Pittsfield. Starts at Dottie’s and ends at the Whitney Center for the Arts.
Call For Poets
The sCrawl is open to poets of all ilks and ages who are willing and able to roll with the punches. As an unamplified event that takes place at various stops along the route, including both indoor and outdoor spaces, poets must be able to travel along the route and feel comfortable sharing their work in public. Talk to anyone who has participated in the past and they will tell you that it is an incredibly inclusive, supportive event, well worth the walk and the need to raise your voice just a little be louder! Get on the list for the sCrawl.
[August 2, 8P] Opening Reception & Poetic Games including head-to-head haiku, rap battle, insta-collabs, etc. Games are open to sCrawl poets and anyone in the room who wants to give it a go.
Call For Poets
Anyone can participate - but you may want to come to prepared with some short poems for a speed slam (1 minute pieces), a boat load of 17 syllable poems for head-to-head haiku, your reading glasses and a sense of humor. More about Head-To-Head Haiku and how to grab a spot the list of 8.
[August 5, 4-10P] Our most popular event - for both audience and poets. A single day, multiple round poetry slam. The preliminary round of bouts, held simultaneously at multiple venues, is open to poets 17 and older on a first-come basis. Top finishers in the preliminary round will move on to the semi finals. Top four finishers in the semis will advance to the finals where the WXW 2017 Poetry Slam Champion will be crowned. There are a limited number of slots available. More info and/or sign up to compete in the Poetry Slam, August 5.
Details
These two following events are invitational with limited opportunities. If you're interested in either of them, please email us for more information.
[August 4, 8P] For Excuse Me While I Kiss The Sky, WordXWord - in harmony with the Berkshire Museum's exhibition Guitar: The Instrument That Rocked The World - has invited and challenged poets, representing a wide range of styles and an even wider range of ages, to use iconic guitar solos as prompts - or jumping off points - for original poetry/spoken word.
Call For Poets
Whether you are an air guitarist, an enthusiastic head nodding listener, or an eyes-closed meditator, there is likely to be an iconic guitar solo that has ripped a hole through your consciousness, stuck like an ear worm, or taken you back in time and place.
For this event, we are asking poets to identify a guitar solo to use as their prompt. How you connect with, submit to, or are inspired by the solo is up to you. We recognize that most iconic guitar solos are associated with lyrics. We’re encouraging poets to focus on using the guitar music itself, NOT the lyrics, as inspiration. In other words, to the extent that it is possible, ignore the words.
[August 3, 8P] Intersection - Following up on last year's Ragged Edge of Truth, the 2017 WXW Festival will continue to drill down to explore what makes truth relative and more than a little bit slippery. The audience is advised that this program may contain explicit content.
Call For Poets
We all exist at the intersection of multiple identities. Some we inherit: race, gender, sexuality, age, family. Others are fluid: class, faith, politics, education, career, etc. Some we own from the inside, and some are layered onto us by others.
For this event, we are asking poets to look at their own - or someone else’s - identities and how those different identities intersect. Each poet’s approach to this challenge is wide open: perhaps a conversation between identities; a stew of identities; more than one poem celebrating or dissecting a single identity; a battle between identities; etc.
