As the temperature cooled outside, the atmosphere inside stayed red hot during the First Annual HeavyWord Poetry Championship, held on July 11. The energy level remained high until nearly midnight, in part due to the efforts of host Jason Moffitt, an accomplished master of ceremony who regularly lends his skills to the Tuesday night speakeasies held in the same location. Moffitt inspired a capacity crowd of friends, family, and others to support the efforts of thirty contestants who were brave enough to put their creative abilities on display for Harrisburg’s first known poetry slam. The event, planned by local poet Randy Gross, was a fundraiser for the Arts for Peace and Justice. Both Gross, a former slam winner, and his wife Lauren, a poet, were on hand to help score the crowd of talented artists who came from as far away as New York City to vie for one of five top awards.

The slam was held at the St. Moritz because owner Mack Granderson is himself a vocalist/pianist committed to supporting the arts. In addition to music performances and the regular poetry readings, Granderson hopes to expand to providing a venue for other literary forms in the future, including prose. In addition to ambiance and near-perfect visibility and acoustics, the restaurant/club provided a buffet for all in attendance.

Prior to participation, the rules were outlined for participants and the audience: a strict three-minute time limit was imposed on each poet, with a penalty for overtime. Scoring was based on both presentation style and content, with two rounds of readings to whittle down the field to twelve and then five finalists. A panel of five judges rated each poet immediately after reading, awarding a maximum of 10 individual points. Providing expertise in this area were Jack Veasey, author of seven books, local poet, and musician; Claude Lewis, poet and attorney; Melody Davis, poet/author, recipient of an NEA grant for poetry, and teacher; Ziza Kearns, Flamenco Dance Group Danzon; and Ron "Mr. Wizard" Spain, Operations Manager at WCTY-AM and patron of poetry. Each occasionally awarded a perfect "10," with the top score of 47 going to Philadelphian Tom Harris. "Hard work!" was how Veasey summarized his role as a judge, an opinion concurred by Lewis, who thought it would have been more fun to be an audience member free from the pressure of scoring.

Once the event got underway at shortly after 7 p.m., themes of peace and justice prevailed in the poems presented by a diverse audience. One of the youngest participants, Jennifer Jones, graduated from Lincoln University recently, but said the experience of placing in a national poetry contest while a student at Harrisburg High School and a subsequent letter of congratulations from Mayor Stephen R. Reed jumpstarted her career. She may have been the only poet accompanied by her mother, Mary Houston, who diligently tallied scores and knew her daughter had made the second round of finalists before the judges announced it.

In addition to a range of short and long poetry forms, the artists displayed a variety of dramatic abilities, from Rich Boucher’s (fourth place) explosive presentation, to second place finisher Tammie Hurd’s use of her lyrical voice to add extra pizzazz by alternately singing and reading her poem. Lynn Blackston had a terse but confrontational style that netted her fifth place, while Andrew Barrow, the oldest participant, lamented: "I can’t afford Viagra," but concluded by assuring the audience "I’m doing the best that I can." Shaashawn "The Voice" Dial used an effective combination of movement and voice to deliver her final round poem, but ran overtime and was subsequently eliminated from a top position in the finish.

First place winner Tom Harris drew laughter for his untitled poem about a word he’d been advised not to use in a poem (if you want to find out what it was, come to a reading at Crown Books this fall honoring the five top place finishers). Harris, who lives in Philadelphia, has formerly competed in National Poetry Slam competitions, and said he and his girlfriend chanced upon the announcement for the local event while on their way through town. He’s probably glad they did — he left with $150 in his pocket and a number of other prizes.

The slam, which was judged a success by both the audience and those who read their poems, netted over a thousand dollars for the Arts for Peace and Justice, and will hopefully become an annual event. On July 28, an open poetry reading and music by the bands Opal (York, PA), Mike Banks (Harrisburg), and Shanti (Harrisburg) will take place from 5 – 8 p.m. in the Strawberry Square Atrium.