MARIPOSA — Mariposa County High students participating in the Mariposa County Arts Council’s Poetry Out Loud (POL) program — a national poetry recitation contest — welcomed actress Lynn Herring Northrop (Lucy Coe of General Hospital) to their classroom last week. The experienced actress volunteered over seven hours of her time, coaching 21 students in performance, body language, emotional cadence and projection in preparation for their upcoming county contest.
“She has the heart of a teacher and her enthusiasm for the power of words is contagious. She worked so well with our students, giving them positive feedback and building their confidence,” says Laura-Lynn La Notte Hays, Mariposa County’s POL coordinator.
“California’s Poetry Out Loud program is the largest in the country,” says Daisy Phillips, program coordinator at the Mariposa Arts Council. “It’s a high-caliber competition and success isn’t just about accuracy when reciting. It’s about true presence, delivery and emotional connection to the piece you are reading out loud. That’s what judges are looking for, and we are thrilled Ms. Herring shared her knowledge and gave our students that extra edge.”
An initiative of the National Endowment for the Arts, POL encourages high school students to learn classic and contemporary poetry through memorization, performance and competition. Students memorize and perform a total of three poems each evaluated on physical presence, voice and articulation, dramatic appropriateness, evidence of understanding, overall performance and accuracy.
The Mariposa Arts Council sends the top-scoring student on an all-expenses-paid trip to compete in State Finals in Sacramento each spring.
More information about Mariposa’s Poetry Out Loud program can be found at http://www.mariposaartscouncil.org/poetry-out-loud/
The MARIPOSA COUNTY ARTS COUNCIL, INC. is an incorporated not-for-profit organization, created to promote and support all forms of the cultural arts, for all ages, throughout Mariposa County and is funded in part by Mariposa County, the California Arts Council and the National Endowment for the Arts.
