Registration for Poetry Out Loud 2022 is now open!

Poetry Out Loud is a national recitation contest that celebrates the power of the spoken word and a mastery of public speaking skills while cultivating self-confidence and an appreciation of students’ literary heritage as they take poetry from the page to the stage. Poetry Out Loud has inspired hundreds of thousands of high school students to discover and appreciate both classic and contemporary poetry.

Semi-Finalist Registration Form

Congratulations to the 2021 winners:

Rose Hansen, Norwell High School
2021 Poetry Out Loud Massachusetts State Champion

Read the Program:

Poetry Out Loud in Massachusetts: History and Statistics

For more information on Poetry Out Loud, visit the official website at poetryoutloud.org. For information about the Massachusetts competition, please email the Education Department at poetryoutloud@huntingtontheatre.org.

"POETRY OUT LOUD helps students master public speaking skills, build self-confidence, and learn about their literary heritage.  By encouraging your students to study, memorize, and perform some of the most influential and timeless poems of the English language, you immerse them in powerful expression and provocative ideas.  Although many students may initially be nervous about reciting in front of their peers, the experience will prove invaluable — not only in school, but also in life.  Much of the future success of students will depend on how well they present themselves in public.  Public speaking is a skill people use every day on both the workplace and the community."— National Endowment for the Arts & The Poetry Foundation

Presented by the National Endowment for the Arts and the Poetry Foundation, in partnership with the Mass Cultural Council and The Huntington.