CSU Summer Arts
 
spoken word













spoken word performance

june 29 to july 12 The deadline has passed for this course
  • Speak up and stand out!

  • Make a bigger impact on an audience using the voice, the word, and the body.

  • Work on your writing and performance skills with the close assistance of five stellar guest artists.

  • Hear your own work, see it recorded, and critique it in a community of peers and mentors who share your passion for connecting the personal and the political, the individual and the community.

  • Exercise your burning desire to put your body and your voice on stage to communicate your passion.

who should apply
This course is designed for students who are comfortable with both writing and performing. We'll be working through mentoring relationships and workshops that focus on improving these skills. This course is appropriate for graduate and undergraduate students as well as spoken word practitioners who are not enrolled in the university. There is no specific background from which spoken word artists come. You may be a literature major, chemistry major, sociology major, coffee maker, fishing boat crew, or congressman (okay, that's not so likely!), but you must feel the burning desire to put your body and your voice on stage to communicate your passion.

how to apply
  1. Submit a brief resume and bio and attach a 200-word personal statement describing your interest in this workshop; a writing sample - no more than 10 pages - that demonstrates the type of material you perform and would like to work with while in residence; a video (or audio, though video is preferred) sample of your spoken word performance work. (Don't stress out on this one! The venue is irrelevant - this is for planning purposes only.)

  2. Send the materials listed in Step One and your completed Registration Form to the Summer Arts Registration Office by Monday, May 19, 2008. The deadline has passed for this course

course coordinator
Professor Kimberly Dark
CSU San Marcos
kimberly@kimberlydark.com
619-708-8115

course number and credits
Undergraduate: ENGLISH 422, 3 units
Graduate: ENGLISH 622, 3 units

materials fee
none


guest artists

Alix Olson
Alix Olson
Firebrand of modern feminism whose stage presence has stunned audiences across North America. (www.alixolson.com)






Taylor Mali

Taylor Mali
Featured in the film Slam Nation, and considered one of the best slam strategists of all time. (www.taylormali.com)






Jack McCarthy

Jack McCarthy
Seasoned storyteller, and sage of the slam scene who proves that diverse perspectives are alive and well in American spoken word performance. (www.standuppoet.net)






Violet Juno

Violet Juno
Avant-garde arts educator who draws on her extensive performance experience to share strategies for fully fleshing out the ideas and beliefs underpinning your spoken word work using what is readily available to you: your voice, your body, and simple yet intriguing props. (reversicon.blogspot.com)





Sonya Renee
Sonya Renee
The most distinguished, accomplished, and recognizable female in the world of Slam Poetry. She is the voice of every woman, from the neglected to the powerful, from the downtrodden to the triumphed. (www.laymanlyric.com/sonya_renee)






Kimberly Dark
An artistic activist whose tender and humorous prose and poetry reveal the hidden intersections of oppression, power, and hope in our lives. (www.kimberlydark.com)


other creative writing courses
Screenwriting: Structure, Story and Script
Writing the Memoir: Transforming Truth into Art

click here to return to 2008 courses

    CSU Summer Arts is Hosted by
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