Workshop will meld contemporary poetry with modern energy

When Beth Russell faces a roomful of students, she doesn’t want to see them sitting in rows, fidgeting uncomfortably as they read aloud a Shakespeare passage. She wants to see them jumping, shouting — or at least standing — as they turn words on a page into a living experience. To truly appreciate drama and poetry, Russell says, one must use all the senses.

“It’s fun to read aloud and feel (poems) in their mouths,” Russell said. “They learn what it means to say a poem rather than read it. Poetry really is a sensational experience.”

She wants to teach students about “slam poetry,” a term that refers to a spoken-word poetry competition that first became popular in the 1980s. The judging is based on delivery and the quality of the work, and performances are usually limited to three minutes.

Russell is leading a poetry workshop today for young adults ages 6 to 18, as a lead-up to Sunday’s da Vinci Days family-friendly Poetry Slam. The workshop is free, but a $5 donation is suggested. It’s scheduled from 1 to 4 p.m. today at the Church of the Good Samaritan on Harrison Boulevard at Northwest 35th Street. Parents are welcome to stay for the workshop.

For Russell, who taught advanced English and English as a second language classes for seven years at Corvallis High School, slam poetry represents an opportunity to turn learning about literature from a static experience in front of a book to a whole-body encounter where poetry is felt as much as learned.

“It’s important for kids to approach literature and art from a playful place,” she said.

Russell earned her master’s degree in fine arts from Pacific University in Forest Grove in the spring, and she will begin teaching at Crescent Valley High School in the fall. She is hoping to apply what she learned at Pacific and at a summer workshop at Fishtrap, the Oregon literary center in Enterprise, to engage students in the thrill of “slam” poetry performance.

“With slam poetry, voice is the most important thing,” Russell said. “You’re taking your energy and giving it voice.”

During the workshop, students will practice reading classical and modern poets, suitable for all ages. The students then will work with the words and learn how to take different approaches to the poems. Play is important when approaching a work of literature, Russell said. It should be a fun, engaging experience, not an academic exercise.

After working with professional pieces, students will then begin working on their own poems, written from the perspective of another person, creature or object.

“It’s easier to speak with something else’s voice,” she said. “In the end, you get to say what you’re thinking, but as a chair, or a hawk.”

By having them practice their poems in front of others, reciting lines into a microphone and becoming comfortable with being loud and expressive, Russell hopes that the students will become confident enough to participate in Sunday’s poetry slam. She said it’s important that young people learn not to fear expressing themselves, and poetry is a great approach to becoming comfortable speaking out.

“This idea that you have a voice and a presence in the world, and that what you say really matters, is really important.”

IF YOU GO

Youth poetry slam workshop, 1 to 4 p.m. today at the Church of the Good Samaritan on Harrison Boulevard and Northwest 35th Street. Parents are welcome to stay for the workshop. $5 suggested donation.

Marys Peak Poetry Slam,

2 p.m. to 3:30 p.m., Sunday, Mangiano Stage, lower campus. Free with admission to da Vinci Days. Poets ages 6 through adult are asked to read their own work as long as it is less than three minutes in length. Cash prizes will be awarded in two categories, ages 6 to 12 and ages 13 through adult. Poems must be family-friendly. Sign-up begins at 1:30 p.m.