Poetry Out Loud
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.
Registration for Poetry Out Loud 2023 is now open! NEW IN 22/23: We have added three subsites for you. Please be sure you click on the appropriate page and register correctly!
Deadlines for Poetry Out Loud Massachusetts 2023
- Registration (all pathways) Opens: Tuesday September 6th, 2022
- Registration Deadline (all pathways): Friday December 16th, 2022
- Preliminary Contest Deadline (all pathways): Friday January 27th, 2023
- Deadline to Register your State Semi-Finalist: Friday February 3rd, 2023
- Regional Semi Finals: March 4th – 6th, 2023
- Locations and times TBD
- MA State Finals: Sunday March 12th, 2023
Rules and Reminders
- Students may only to participate via one pathway.
- Only *if* a student’s school is not registered to participate may they register with a cultural organization or as an individual.
Click here for school registration Click here for MA Cultural Organization registration Click here for student registration
If you have any questions, please email poetryoutloud@huntingtontheatre.org
Masconomet Regional High School junior Ava Beringer was named the 2022 Poetry Out Loud Massachusetts State Champion on Sunday, March 13, 2022.
Placing second was Lauren Lima, a junior from Dartmouth High School in Dartmouth.
Placing third was Irianny Solorin, who is a senior at Methuen High School.
Read the program:
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.
