Comments on: How to Give a Great Poetry Reading

By: Karan

Karan — Mon, 01 Jun 2020 15:04:01 +0000

That’s a perfect guidebook for someone like me who has just started appearing on the stage. And yes, you are right. Making eye contact, practicing, and doing it again and again adds more confidence to me as a reader. Though people like my poetry, what I feel lacking is confidence and altering the tone while speaking. Thanks for this guide. I will try to inculcate these and might be a better speaker soon.

By: Anonymous

Anonymous — Mon, 06 Apr 2020 22:23:40 +0000

4.5

By: Ibrahim

Ibrahim — Thu, 05 Dec 2019 19:37:37 +0000

I’ve been invited to read Arabic poetry in front of a Western audience for the first time in my life tomorrow night at an art show. I keep telling myself to just get interested in the art, and the people, and not even care or think about how I’m coming across. I already know most of the poem by heart, and they can’t understand it anyway, but the closer I get to the day, I started thinking nervous thoughts until now.

Can somebody chat with me briefly to give me some pointers to reframe it so I can have a great experience and enjoy this?

Thanks

By: ערב קריאת שירה Poetry Reading | הוזה מִלִים Hallucinating words

ערב קריאת שירה Poetry Reading | הוזה מִלִים Hallucinating words — Thu, 28 Nov 2019 21:54:21 +0000

[…] How to Give a Great Poetry Reading […]

By: Grant Barber

Grant Barber — Sun, 02 Sep 2018 23:05:59 +0000

“I was made for that role.” Yes! I’m an Episcopal priest; early on an upstart college student (I was a chaplain) challenged me to preach w/o notes or manuscript. He was right. All the advice you give here is gold. The trick–whether you go entirely w/o notes (not sure a poet would want to try quoting poems from memory, but maybe), or minimal written out text: claim your authority. That doesn’t mean being arrogant. But they are there to hear you; they are wishing you well. Maybe this comes with the power pose bit. I like that. One further addition: if you can get into the physical space early–that day, a week before, etc….and not necessary but even better have one or two people ‘out there’ listening to you, people who know and like you but will be honest…then it will make stepping onto that stage much less intimidating at the time. You don’t have to do the whole reading–but a real part of it, including the pauses, appropriate pacing to your writing, off-the-cuff transitions, asides, anecdotes that occur to you that are relevant…. Oh, and if you expected 50 people, or 100, and there are only 10…no difference. Give them your best. It’s not you. It’s not the material. It might be publicity, or conflict of other events, or whatever: don’t let it throw you off. We live in strange times, things are not normal, and we need all the voices in all the various ways as is possible. Poetry IS IMPORTANT. You probably aren’t a minister, but PREACH…..

By: Emma

Emma — Sat, 28 Apr 2018 22:07:15 +0000

I just won a contest and I’ve been afraid to mess up the Q A that I was gonna study. That’s right STUDY,Ew. I think the most important way as mentioned up above is invisionmeant,pausing and posture. I’m gonna try repeating it so I feel more grounded. I think anyone who is feeling insecure about public speaking should read this article.