Valladolid becomes the heart of universal poetry with a competition that will give voice to one hundred poets before the statue of Zorrilla.
The event will take place on October 18 at the foot of the statue of José Zorrilla.
By Jorge Alonso Curiel
HoyLunes – On Friday, October 18, Valladolid will become the World Capital of Poetry with the celebration of the First Open Mic Poetry World Championship.
Organized by the City Council and the Department of Culture, Tourism and Sports of the Regional Government of Castilla y León, the event will be held at the foot of the statue of Valladolid-born poet José Zorrilla, located in the square that bears his name in the city center.
This first edition “opens its doors to creative minds and brave hearts who want to leave their mark on paper,” as stated on the official website of the event, valladolidmundialdepoesia.es, with no restriction on nationality. The site also provides the rules and registration details.
From all the submitted poems, each between 20 and 30 lines, the jury—composed of writers Dolores Redondo, Mara Torres, César P. Gellida, and poets Miguel Gane and Valladolid native Redry—will select 100 authors. These finalists will be required to recite their verses for a minimum of one minute and a maximum of two. Divided into morning and afternoon sessions, 5 semifinalists will be chosen from the 100 participants, and from them, 3 finalists will compete in the afternoon session for the first prize of €3,000. Delivery and stage presence will also be evaluated.
The event is expected to receive “a great many” submissions, said César Pérez Gellida during the presentation of the competition at City Hall on May 27. As Redry noted, it was born “in the bars,” from “open mics.”
Meanwhile, Madrid-based poet Miguel Gane remarked that this is an ideal opportunity to place poetry “on the same level as the novel”.
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