An explosive and inclusive poetry night featuring Birmingham Poet Laureate Jasmine Gardosi and Arji Manuelpillai.
Off the Chest returns to Canada Water Theatre for another inclusive spoken word poetry night celebrating original voices and poetry that makes a statement.
This explosive night will include special features from three acclaimed poets, plus opportunities to perform in their highly celebrated open mic, welcome to poets of all backgrounds, stages and ages. Sign up for the open mic on the night.
Jasmine Gardosi is the Birmingham Poet Laureate. She is a multiple slam champion, beatboxer and winner of the Out-Spoken Prize for Poetry. Her work exploring identity, LGBTQ issues and mental health has appeared on Button Poetry, at the Tate Modern, Glastonbury Festival, Symphony Hall and across BBC Radio. She was featured on Sky Arts' BAFTA-winning show Life & Rhymes and her poem about the pandemic, filmed on a rollercoaster, was broadcast across America on PBS. Her poetry/beatbox/Celtic dubstep show ‘Dancing To Music You Hate’ explores gender identity and was commissioned by Warwick Arts Centre. After premiering to standing ovations, it was shortlisted for Best Spoken Word Show in the Saboteur Awards and its titular track was performed with the BBC Symphony Orchestra at Symphony Hall, broadcast on BBC Four.
Arji Manuelpillai is a poet, performer and creative facilitator based in London. He was the Jerwood/Arvon Mentee mentored by Hannah Lowe. His poetry has been published in magazines including Poetry Review, The Rialto and Bath Magg. He has also been shortlisted for prizes including The National Poetry Prize 2021, The Out-Spoken Prize and The Winchester Poetry Prize 2021. Arji’s debut pamphlet ‘Mutton Rolls' was published with Out-Spoken Press in 2020 and his new book ‘Improvised Explosive Device’ was released in the Autumn of 2022. This highly acclaimed book was noted in The Telegraph’s Top 20 poetry books of the year, was The PBS Winter Selection and was also named in The Guardian’s best recent poetry section in December 2022.
Plus, there will be one more special feature to be announced soon!
Hosted by Ella Dorman-Gajic and Iftikhar Latif, Off The Chest welcomes poets and spoken word artists from all backgrounds. Audiences are in for a variety of different voices and experiences.
