. CFSW 2007 . Halifax . October 10-13 .

LATEST NEWS

SEPTEMBER 10: CFSW founding member Drek Daa and celebrated Mi’kmaq poet Rita Joe to be honored at the fourth annual Canadian Festival of Spoken Word.

Drek Daa is an award winning poet, songwriter, CBC columnist, arts organizer, academic, and psychotherapist. He arrived in Canada from Poland in 1990, when he enrolled in his first ESL course. He did not leave school until 2006, when he received his PhD in Psychology from Simon Fraser University. Drek Daa started writing poetry in English in 2000, and since then performed his poetry in all imaginable venues, winning, among other honors, the title of Canadian Individual Performance Poetry Co-Champion @ the 2004 Canadian Spoken Wordlympics Festival , Canada's largest performance poetry festival. He was a subject of a 2004 full-length CBC documentary. He is a holder of 2006 grants from Canada Council for the Arts and Winnipeg Arts Council for the production of his poetry/song CD Just Jittering (released January 2007). From 2005 to 2007, he was a weekly columnist for the CBC Radio One as Drek Daa: That Polish Guy.

The Honourable Rita Joe (1932-2007) was a Mi'kmaq-Canadian poet and song writer, called the Poet Laureate of the Mi'kmaq people. Ms. Joe was in her 30s and the mother of eight when she discovered her knack for writing. Disturbed by the Aboriginal stereotypes that filled the books her children read, she took up a pen. "I am the Indian, and the burden, lies yet with me," she gently thundered. People listened. Her books, The Poems of Rita Joe, Songs of Eskasoni: More Poems of Rita Joe, Inu and Indians We're Called and Songs of Rita Joe: The Autobiography of a Mi'kmaq Poe t, have met with resounding acclaim from both critical and general readers. She has been showcased on television and in radio documentaries. A member of the Order of Canada, Rita Joe was one of the few non-politicians ever called to the Queen's Privy Council for Canada. She received a 1997 National Aboriginal Achievement Award for the beauty of her words.

The words of Darek Dawda and the late Rita Joe will be highlighted in performance at the CFSW National Poetry Slam Finals on Saturday, October 13 in Halifax.

ABOUT THE FESTIVAL

The Canadian Festival of Spoken Word (CFSW) is a festival of performance poetry that hosts artists from across Canada to celebrate and promote spoken word performance. The festival rotates between host cities in order to develop and share audiences between artists, and equally inspire networking between artists and organizers from various regions of Canada.

The fourth annual Canadian Festival of Spoken Word is presented by Word Iz Bond Spoken Word Artists’ Collective. Word Iz Bond stages a monthly performance series in Halifax dubbed SPEAK! (check it out on the third Thursday of each month, 9 p.m. at Ginger’s Tavern, 1662 Barrington St. in Halifax).

CFSW PAST PERFORMERS

Barbara Adler; shayne aeichele (a/k/a shayne avec i grec); John Akpata; Jerry Alexandre; CR Avery; Jill Battson; Lisa Baird aka Lisa B; Steph Berntson; Wakefield Brewster; Chrystalene Buhler; Doretta Charles; Sue Cormier; TL Cowan ; D.Kimm; Katie Daley ; Dane Jah Ras (Dane Swan); Darek Dawda; Jake De Peuter ; sam decter (a/k/a sammy d); Shawna Dixon; SR Duncan; Dunce the Wizard; Christoff Engbrecht; Ian Ferrier; Kersten Flenter ; Eddie Garnier; Kagagn Goh ; Shauntay Grant; TL Groves ; Heather Hermant; Amanda Hiebert; Garth Hull; Ivy; iZrEAL; Zaccheus Jackson; carey jernigan (a/k/a talus); heronJones; Shane Koyczan; Jen Lam ; Eve Langevin; Steve Larkin; Leviathan; Al Mader; Loty Malebranche; Kevin Matthews; Brendan Mcleod; AJ Mckenzie ; Kevin Mackenzie; Justin McGrail; Brendan McLeod; Mike McGee ; Paul Cameron Miller; DJ Morales; Dwayne Morgan; Motion; alex murray (a/k/a blank space); Nereo; Kat Norris ; Alexis O’Hara; Oni the Haitian Sensation; Outlawed Matter; Overload; Bryan Parnell; Julie Parrell; Hilary Peach; Matt Peake; Hugh Phukovsky aka Paul Anthony; Pilote Le Hot; Q the Romantic Revolutionary; Fernando Raguero; Teagan Redekop; Nico Rogers; BethAnn Sadowski; Steve Sauve; Kim Shaughnessy; Joe Keithley aka Joey Shithead; David Silverberg; Mic Smith; Rose Smith; SPIN; Addena Sumter-Freitag; The Svelte Ms. Spelt; Brian Taylor; Andrea Thompson; T.O.F.U.; T.O.M.; scott towson; Magpie Ulysses; RC Weslowski; Will Da~RealOne; Sheri-D Wilson; Ardath Whynacht; Jeffrey Yu . . . and more

PROGRAM

Wednesday, October 10, 2007: Halifax In Poetry

8:00p.m. -- Ginger's Tavern
Halifax In Poetry
Word Iz Bond
Silvio Pupo (piano)

Thursday, October 11, 2007: Youth Day

11a.m. - 3p.m. -- Dartmouth High School
CFSW Youth Day
Lesley Choyce
Taryn Della
Eddy Da Original One
Matter
Dani Oore
SPIN
Panel: Lesley Choyce, Taryn Della

8:00p.m. -- Ginger's Tavern
CFSW National Slam (Round I)
Slam Teams
DJ RS Smooth
Taryn Della (host)

Friday, October 12, 2007: Voices For Change

12:30p.m. -- Dalhousie University (Student Union Building, Main Floor)
Open Mic

1:30p.m. -- Dalhousie University (Student Union Building, Room 224)
Voices For Change Performance/Panel
Melissa N. Green
SPIN

3:00p.m. -- Leaving from Dalhousie University (Student Union Buliding)
Guerilla Poetry Readings on the streets of Halifax

8:00p.m. -- Ginger's Tavern
CFSW National Slam (Round II)
Slam Teams
DJ RS Smooth
Taryn Della (host)

Saturday, October 13, 2007: Words & Rhythms

12:30p.m. -- Art Gallery of Nova Scotia
Open Mic

1:30 p.m. -- Art Gallery of Nova Scotia
COAST 2 COAST
An opportunity for poets and promoters from around the country to discuss
the development of spoken word in Canada.

2:30p.m. -- Art Gallery of Nova Scotia
Words & Rhythms Youth Showcase

3:00p.m. -- Art Gallery of Nova Scotia
The Poetry Challenge

8:00 p.m. -- Coconut Grove
Slam Finals
4 Slam Teams
Darek Dawda
Candy Palmeter
DJ RS Smooth

VENUES:

1. Ginger’s Tavern
1662 Barrington Street (downtown Halifax)

2. Dalhousie University, Student Union Building
6136 University Avenue

3. Art Gallery of Nova Scotia
1723 Hollis Street (downtown Halifax)

4. Coconut Grove
Located on Pizza Corner (downtown Halifax)

EVENT COSTS:

**Wednesday, Thursday and Friday evening events: $5 cover

**Saturday evening event: $8 cover

**All day events are free

(note: pre-registration required for Saturday, Oct 13 events at the Art Gallery of Nova Scotia; to pre-register, email wordizbond@mail.com by noon on Wednesday, Oct 10, 2007)

EVENT DESCRIPTIONS:

HALIFAX IN POETRY

Join Word Iz Bond Spoken Word Artists' Collective as they collaborate with jazz pianist Silvio Pupo to craft musical and poetic pictures of HRM.

CFSW NATIONAL SLAM

Teams of poets from 8 Canadian cities go head to head in a fast-paced, high-energy competition hosted by spoken word artist/comedian Taryn Della. The top 4 teams will move on to the final round on October 13, hosted by comedian Candy Palmeter (The Candy Show) and featuring performances by 2007 Male Poet of Honour Darek Dawda. The final slam will also feature a special tribute to 2007 Female Poet Of Honour Rita Joe.

VOICES FOR CHANGE

Join special guest poet/activists as they share their own powerful words, and talk about using artistic expression as a vehicle for social change.

GUERILLA POETRY

Spoken word artists from around the country take to the streets of Halifax to share their words and rhythms.

WORDS & RHYTHMS YOUTH SHOWCASE

Guest musicians showcase in a special collaborative performance with emerging writers from Word Iz Bond's Youth SPEAK! initiative.

THE POETRY CHALLENGE

What happens when you pair professional musicians with teams of poets and give them 60 minutes to come up with something poetically and musically wonderful? Come to the poetry challenge and find out! All poets welcome to come take up the challenge. Pre-registration is required; to register, email wordizbond@mail.com by noon on Wednesday, October 10, 2007.