Pikes Peak Poetry Summit

Join our summit and open yourself to new ideas through powerful artistry. April is National Poetry Month and this summit will be the perfect way to celebrate whether you are a seasoned poet, exploring the art form, or just a lover of poetry. Get inspired, improve your craft, share your words, and learn more about poetry locally and across the state. Engage with our poetry workshops, learn how to slam, and experience amazing poetry and dance performances. 

Workshops are provided at no cost and include How to Slam 101, using Surrealist games as a poetry tool, crafting a performance art piece, building community through poetry, and a poetry zine workshop for youth. For detailed descriptions of each workshop and a schedule of the day’s events, please see below. 

Parking at The Hall is metered, but you can receive two hours of free parking each day by scanning a physical library card at the kiosks located near the entrance to Penrose Library. 

How to Slam 

This is a crash course in Slam poetry. Slam is a competitive art event in which poets perform spoken word poetry before a live audience and a panel of judges. Learn the history of slam, the rules, tips and tricks, and how to write a strong slam poem. We'll practice performing and there will be a slam at the end of the summit to use your newfound skills! 

Stop Making Sense: The Exquisite Corpse and Other Surrealist Games  

Breaking logic is a powerful tool that can release wild, creative images and deep insights from your unconscious into your poetry. Learn a little about the roots of the Surrealist Literary Movement and play classic Surrealist games including the Exquisite Corpse, where we’ll make a group poem come alive. 

Let's Make Poetry Zines!  

In this workshop for youth, you’ll be turning one (or more) of your poems into a zine! A zine is a do-it-yourself book that is easily reproducible, so you can easily share your work with friends, family, and fans! Participants will be provided with paper, art supplies, magazines for collage, everything they need to turn their poems into zines! They just need to bring a poem. 

Shaping Your Story: Writing a Performance Art Piece 

Performance art is a form of artistic expression where the body is used to convey a creative message for an audience. In this 40-minute workshop, we will work to script our very own performance art pieces. We will explore different storytelling techniques and design the makings of a moving performance art piece. Students should plan to bring a notebook and a writing utensil. 

Poetic Resilience 

This workshop will celebrate rest, joy, and self-care through the lens of Poetry. There will be a guided discussion, mindfulness activities, and writing prompts to encourage participants to get creative and to tend to themselves. Poetry is an incredible modality for healing, and writing prompts are a vehicle for processing and connection. We have to pour into ourselves before we can care for others. All levels and interests are welcome! 

Spontaneous Overflow   

In this brief writing workshop, Becoming // Poetry co-founders Katie Scruggs Galloway and Peyton Elise Craft will cover writing techniques and offer guidance on how to write a spontaneous poem, focusing on the essential role of passion. 

Tales From the Dreamscape: Writing as connection to the subconscious  

The constant movement of our busy lives can leave us feeling removed from ourselves as fully realized individuals. In this workshop, we will focus on using storytelling as a means of processing the noise and finding the themes and patterns that keep us from settling into ourselves. We'll be talking about listening to our dreams, practicing some meditative breathing, and making fractured images visceral through words. Hope to see you there! 

Schedule of Events 

8:30am      Breakfast  

9:00am      Welcome, intro, and housekeeping  

9:10am      State of Poetry by Ashley Cornelius  

9:20am      Hillside Elders Dance 

9:30am      How to Slam 101 

10:00am    Surrealist workshop with Brook Bhagat 

11:00am    Youth zine workshop with Nico Wilkinson  

11:00am    Performance workshop with Jasmine Dillavou  

11: 45am   Lunch  

1:00pm      Poetic Resilience with Ashley Cornelius 

2pm           Spontaneous Poems with Becoming Poetry  

3pm           Tales from the Dreamscape with Regan Sanders

3:45pm      Colorado Springs Slam with Arthur Bellfield 

4:30pm      Close