Theatre Department to host ‘Sacrificial Poets’ for workshops, performance

The Department of Theatre in the College of Arts + Architecture will host the Chapel Hill-based “Sacrificial Poets” for a three-day residency that will culminate in a free public performance at 7:30 p.m., Saturday, Nov. 16, in the Cone University Center’s After Hours Lounge.

The Sacrificial Poets is an award-winning spoken word poetry organization that serves middle and high school and college-aged youth across North Carolina. Established in 2005, the Sacrificial Poets was formerly known as the Chapel Hill Slam Team. After the murder of UNC Charlotte student and founding Slam Team member Irina Yarmolenko in 2008, the team changed its name to the “Sacrificial Poets” to commemorate her legacy and contribution.

The Sacrificial Poets write and perform spoken word pieces about issues of social justice. A 2011 performance project chronicled the group’s travels to Egypt and Tunisia to interview witnesses to the events of the Arab uprisings—the revolutionary actions that began with the December 2010 self-immolation of Tunisian protester Mohamed Bouazizi and led to the overthrow of Egypt’s Hosni Mubarak. The multimedia production created from this experience “Poetic Portraits of a Revolution” is a series of slam-style performance poems supported by filmed interviews, music, still photographs and text.

For their UNC Charlotte residency, the visiting artists will teach workshops to student groups at local high schools and on the UNC Charlotte campus on Thursday and Friday, Nov. 14-15. Their Nov. 16 free public performance will feature writings by the Sacrificial Poets and by high school and college students who participated in their residency workshops.

The Sacrificial Poets residency is part of a larger New Works Festival produced by the Department of Theatre this fall. The first two events were concert readings of new plays for young audiences, produced in partnership with Children’s Theatre of Charlotte. “The Paperbag Princess” was performed Sept. 6; “Jeremy Draws a Monster” was performed for First Ward Elementary School students Oct. 18.

The Sacrificial Poets residency is funded in part through a mini-diversity grant and is presented by the Department of Theatre and the Robinson Hall Players with program partners: the Multicultural Resource Center, the Office of Multicultural Academic Services, the Office of International Programs and the University College First Year Programs.