Winning submissions will be performed during a spoken word showcase.
The Arkansas Arts Council and Mosaic Templars Cultural Center have issued an open call for original poetry from Arkansas artists willing to recite on stage.
All poetry should be related to Black history and cannot contain profanity. Winning poems, which will be selected by a committee, will be performed by the authoring poets during a livestream spoken word showcase called Figuratively Speaking. The performance will be featured on Facebook Live at 7 p.m. Feb. 26 as part of MTCC programs for Black History Month.
Selected artists will be compensated for their time. Poets must practice social distancing during performances on the MTCC ballroom stage. Masks will be required when not performing.
All submissions should include the poet’s name, a paragraph about the artist, and contact information including a phone number and email address. Submissions also may be delivered via video that demonstrates the artist’s spoken word poetry skills. Video submissions may be made via DropBox, GoogleDrive or YouTube.
Original works must be submitted by 5 p.m. Friday by visiting Mosaic Templars Cultural Center at 501 W. 9th St. in Little Rock or by emailing brian.rodgers@arkansas.gov.
For more information, contact MTCC at 501-683-3593.