Pouring out your emotions is easier said than done, but sometimes all you need is an open space and an audience that listens.
The Library Club is providing just that as it host the 11th Semi-Annual Poetry Night event on Thursday Dec 10.
The event will be held in the Teleconference Center (LC-155) from 6 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. and will consist of students standing up on stage and reading their own original poems.
According to Paula Pereira, library club adviser, the poetry night started back in 2009 and has become popular since.
“We started out with maybe a few people attending it, but now everybody knows about students ask me about it. Then they submit their poems to our email address. Usually we have about 20 to 25 contestants going up on stage,” Pereira said.
The contestants are chosen through a submission process so long as each entry meets the guidelines.
The contestant must be a student of Cerritos College, the submission must be original, if it’s in another language the poem must have an english translation and include name student ID and contact info.
The Library club gives out first, second, third and honorable mention prizes at the event. The prize consist of scholarship money.
Although prizes are always a plus, the main purpose of the poetry night is to provide a venue for students to share their ideas and personal works.
Pereira believes that providing this event it gets students to connect with one another.
“It’s a good way for them to relieve stress. I notice that a lot of the students feel very lonely so a lot of their poems are related to lost love or feeling attached. Having an event like this promotes an environment where everyone can connect with each other because everyone is a student right here and they are not alone,” Pereira said.
Students can submit their poems to cclibraryclub@hotmail.com.
The poetry night will start off with two acts divided by an intermission break.
The acts will be filled with a variety of different poems all created by Cerritos College students.
After the contestants are finished reading their poems, the open mic portion will begin where anyone can hop up on stage and share any form of expression whether it’s a song or favorite poem.
According to Pamela Rodriguez, ESL coordinator for the library club, the Poetry Night Event is a great space for students to recite and perform their poems.
Students will be able to share their passion for writing with many other students like them.
Rodriguez has participated in the event twice before and recounts it as a wonderful experience.
“Students should definitely attend this event because they will get to hear great poems, they’ll be able to find more students that probably, think in many ways the same as them.
“Also, they will have a great time, and the best of all if they decide to participate as poets they can win cash prices,” Rodriguez said.
The Library club works all semester long to put together this event by assigning tasks to each member.
Rodriguez said the club organizes the event to be one of the best events of the semester.
