The students who participated in Poetry Out Loud this year performed “remarkably” under the time restrictions, according to judge and Santa Barbara Arts Commission Executive Director Ms. Ginny Brush.

Due to finals, the students had around three days to prepare their poems for the annual recitation contest.

Upper School English 10 and AP English instructor Ms. Boyana Hill coordinated Poetry Out Loud and coached her students in recitation.

“They memorized the poems fairly quickly. Because of the maturity level, the seniors were able to produce something a little more thoughtful,” she said.

“I loved doing that [coaching the students]. I was a little hesitant about it at first; asking my seniors to spend extra time which they do not have memorizing the poem. I felt like it would be enriching. No matter who sits in my class that person should be exposed to the sounds of poetry and its an enrichment that they will probably not get anywhere else and I feel privileged to be able to give them a chance,” Ms. Hill said.

Because some of the seniors had participated in Poetry Out Loud as sophomores, they had a chance to have a do-over.

These seniors had not had a chance to recite in front of the school.

Daria Etezadi, who placed first, said “reciting my poem in front of the whole school just made me more aware of my audience. I made more of an effort to really connect with my audience and grab its attention this time around.”

Seniors also had a chance to choose different poems. “The first time I picked a poem for its language but I didn’t really connect to it. This time I choose a poem that I could really become,” said Anastasia Antonova, who placed second.

For most sophomores, this was a completely new experience.

A few actors had a chance to recite, like Mia Chavez, who earned an honorable mention was recently in a production of “Legally Blonde: The Musical.”

Another actor, Connor Curran, placed third. The stage was not so foreign to him; Connor starred in lead roles in both Laguna’s fall play and spring musical last year.

For freshmen students the Poetry Outloud assembly was a first. “I thought that the students who performed were very courageous and expressed themselves
beautifully,” said freshman Maddie Sokolove.

All students who placed first through third and two of the three who won honorable mentions will go on to the county level of competition, reciting against students from schools in the area like Dos Pueblos High School and Pioneer Valley High School.

This level of competition was broadcast on TV Channel 17 station on February 6.