Poetry Recital Winners
This year’s final of the Poetry Recitation Competition was the best yet; all finalists performed at an impressively high standard to a large, avid audience. Plus, there were brownies and flapjacks. Poetry ranged from longstanding favourites such as Jabberwocky by Lewis Carroll to challenging Shakespearean sonnets with notable additions to the Caterhamian repertoire. Performances covered the gamut of human emotion: funny, dramatic, poignant, disturbing, jolly, haunting. They were joined by the two staff finalists: Ms Drummond and Mrs Yankova, whose antithetical but equally superb recitations clearly inspired the pupils.
The judges (and audience) thoroughly enjoyed every performance but ultimately were blown away by several outstanding and exceptional recitations: Charlotte Cross and Olivia Lindo were both highly commended for tackling complex and challenging poems with real panache; Phoebe (Upper Sixth) was awarded third place for her subtle and affirming recitation of The Full Indian Rope Trick by Charlotte Bryce; Beryl Chau (Lower Sixth) read disturbingly evocative and moving The Messages by Wilfrid Wilson Gibson earned her second place and the winner, with a staggeringly powerful whilst also perceptive and controlled recitation of Prayer Before Birth by Louis Macniece, was Eve Gordon (Fourth Year). Huge congratulations and thanks to all this year’s finalists, as well as those who reached the year heats too. All of the finalists are now welcome to enter the Poetry By Heart competition, which gives them the opportunity to compete prestigiously at a national level. Those who are interested should speak to Ms Wildsmith about getting involved.
Well done one and all – do perform your poems for your family and treasure your hard earned knowledge of a poem that is now your own.
Eve Gordon (Fourth Year) – 1st
Beryl Chau (Lower Sixth) – 2nd
Phoebe Salem (Upper Sixth) – 3rd
Charlotte Cross – Highly Commended
Olivia Lindo – Highly Commended
with Jack Butler also being of note
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