Poets have 3 minutes and 10 seconds to present their original work without the use of props, music, or costume. Your poem begins when you address the audience.
Points are deducted for violating the time limit, the deductions increase until 4 minutes. At four minutes the poet is disqualified from the competition. Prop and other similar violations will result in a score of zero for the poem.
The contest will be judged by five members of the audience, who are unaffiliated with the poets on stage. Judges will score the piece anywhere from 0.0 to 10.0, evaluating such qualities as performance, content, and originality. The high and low scores of each performance are tossed, and the middle three are added giving the performer their score.
More detailed explanations of each rule are available upon request. However, during slam events, the host’s verdict rules in case of violation.
