LAFARGE Cement Zimbabwe has committed over $1 000 to support local arts through the Lafarge Poetry Slam which will see 20 poets battling for honours this Saturday at KwaMambo in Avondale, Harare.
BY WINSTONE ANTONIO
The poetry fiesta will be hosted in partnership with LitFest under the theme Building Better Cities, Building Better Citizens.
Lafarge Cement Zimbabwe communications manager Tsungie Manyeza said the poetry slam was aimed at providing a platform for thought provoking poetry about key subjects relating to society.
“The contestants will battle it out in three rounds of live performances, after which the top three poets will be selected. The best poet will walk away with a cash prize of $800, while the first runner up will get $400 and the second will be awarded $200,” she said.
“The prize money comes with specially crafted animal horn trophies which resemble the role of a poet as a bearer of important messages in society. The 10 finalists will also get token prizes in form of books.”
Manyeza said there will be a panel of judges adjudicating the process and after each round, the contestants with the highest points will proceed to the next phase, until the top three poets eventually emerge.
“This particular poetry slam theme, Building Better Cities, Building Better Citizens, is a call for poets to consider positive and socially constructive messages in their poetry. The expectation is to build positivity and inspire solutions to societal issues,” she said.
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Litfest founder Chirikure Chirikure yesterday told NewsDay Life &Style that the arts sector thrived on the support of stakeholders to grow and to survive.
“This particular partnership with Lafarge Cement Zimbabwe shows that it is not a mere donation scenario or marketing gimmick, but a mutual partnership that will go a long way as the artists involved are young, and have long future ahead of them,” he said.
