Providence Poetry Slam, 115 Empire Street, West Warwick, RI (2025)

10/09/2025

OPEN MIC + TEAM QUALIFIER POETRY SLAM #2!— See you Thursday, October 16th at Main Stage! This is your final of two chances to qualify for Semi-Finals A. Want to compete in the poetry slam? Read below *carefully* for instructions!

🏆

At 7:00 PM, doors to AS220 Main Stage open, + sign-up lists for both Open Mic + Team Qualifier Poetry Slam #1 go out. The show begins promptly at 8:00pm. Suggested donation of $5-$10. No one’s turned away for lack of funds.

🍁

OPEN MIC — Open to all ages + all literary genres: poetry, prose, rap, music, more! No covers, original work only. You have 5 minutes — please be considerate of time! You can only sign up for either the open mic *or* the poetry slam.

🎤

POETRY SLAM — A literary competition in which poets perform their own original work using no props, costumes, or musical accompaniment. 5 random judges from the audience score each poem from 0.0 to 10.0.

⏰

IMPORTANT RULES FOR SLAM COMPETITORS:

* Capped at 8 poets — first come, first served
* Line begins at door between AS220 Bar & AS220 Main Stage
* To compete, come early *before* 7 PM — don’t cut the line
* To compete, you must be 18+ years old
* To compete, bring 3 poems under 3 minutes — 3rd poem is for a tiebreaker
- Our slam has 2 rounds with eliminations — in Round 1, all 8 poets compete, then top 6 scores advance to Round 2
- Top 4 poets advance to Semi-Finals A on November 20th
- Top poets from Semi-Finals A + Semi-Finals B compete for a spot on the team at Grand Slam Finals on March 19th, 2025
- Questions? Leave a comment, DM us or email [email protected]
- NOTE: These rules are subject to change while we figure out our new slam structure — we will publicly communicate all updates

📝

UPCOMING POETRY SLAM & OPEN MIC DATES:

Team Qualifier #2 - October 16th, 2025
Semi-Finals A - November 20th, 2025
Team Qualifier #3 - December 18th, 2025
Team Qualifier #4 - January 15th, 2026
Semi-Finals B - February 19th, 2026
Grand Slam Finals - March 19th, 2026

🏅

10/02/2025

🔑 OPEN MIC ft. ROMAN JOHNSON, PHD — Come down to AS220 Main Stage () TONIGHT Thursday, October 2nd for a multi-genre open mic and feature from the marvelous Roman Johnson, PhD ()!

🎤

OPEN MIC — Doors open and sign-ups begin at 7:00 PM. Show begins right at 8:00 PM. Suggested donation of $5 to $10. No one’s turned away for lack of funds! Open to all ages & open to all literary & music genres: poetry, prose, rap, more! No covers, original work only. You have 5 minutes — please be considerate of time!

💌

QUESTIONS? — DM us or email [email protected]! To learn more, visit provslam.org!

🙏🏾

ABOUT OUR FEATURE — Roman Johnson, PhD is a writer and scientist from Memphis, TN. He is a second–year MFA student in poetry at Brown University and the winner of the Clark Atlanta Poetry Prize and the Lucille Clifton Poetry Prize from Backbone Press. He is a 2025 Lambda Literary Workshop Fellow in Fiction and has received numerous other fellowships and residencies from institutions like Linda Hall Library, Breadloaf, Tin House, and Knoll Farm. His writing found in anthologies and journals such Obsidian, African Voices, and elsewhere.

😈

09/16/2025

OPEN MIC + TEAM QUALIFIER POETRY SLAM #1! — Kick off our 2025-2026 slam season this Thursday, September 18th at AS220 Main Stage! This is your first of two chances to qualify for Semi-Finals A. Want to compete in the poetry slam? Read below *carefully* for instructions!

🏆

At 7:00 PM, doors to AS220 Main Stage open, + sign-up lists for both Open Mic + Team Qualifier Poetry Slam #1 go out. The show begins promptly at 8:00pm. Suggested donation of $5-$10. No one’s turned away for lack of funds.

🍎

OPEN MIC — Open to all ages + all literary genres: poetry, prose, rap, music, more! No covers, original work only. You have 5 minutes — please be considerate of time! You can only sign up for either the open mic *or* the poetry slam.

🎤

POETRY SLAM — A literary competition in which poets perform their own original work using no props, costumes, or musical accompaniment. 5 random judges from the audience score each poem from 0.0 to 10.0.

⏰

IMPORTANT RULES FOR SLAM COMPETITORS:

* Capped at 8 poets — first come, first served
* Line begins at door between AS220 Bar & AS220 Main Stage
* To compete, come early *before* 7 PM — don't cut the line
* To compete, you must be 18+ years old
* To compete, bring 3 poems under 3 minutes — 3rd poem is for a tiebreaker
- Our slam has 2 rounds with eliminations — in Round 1, all 8 poets compete, then top 6 scores advance to Round 2
- Top 4 poets advance to Semi-Finals A on November 20th
- Top poets from Semi-Finals A + Semi-Finals B compete for a spot on the team at Grand Slam Finals on March 19th, 2025
- Questions? Leave a comment, DM us or email [email protected]
- NOTE: These rules are subject to change while we figure out our new slam structure — we will publicly communicate all updates

📝

UPCOMING POETRY SLAM DATES:

Team Qualifier #1 - September 18th, 2025
Team Qualifier #2 - October 16th, 2025
Semi-Finals A - November 20th, 2025
Team Qualifier #3 - December 18th, 2025
Team Qualifier #4 - January 15th, 2026
Semi-Finals B - February 19th, 2026
Grand Slam Finals - March 19th, 2026

🏅

09/05/2025

The final performance of the 2025 Providence Poetry Slam Team! 💥 Meet our beloved poets downtown at the FREE .fest — Saturday, September 6th, 2:30 to 3:15 PM at Mathewson Street Stage (122 Mathewson Street between Washington and Westminster.)

Come celebrate Christa, Febo, GBRL, Michaelis & René in their final OT5 live performance together as a team! ⚡️ You can also obtain copies of their co-authored chapbook “How To Catch A Pig” for only $10 to $15! 🐖

This summer, these five artists met weekly to hone their craft on page & stage. 🖊️ They collaborated, confided in each other, created poetry in community. They competed in local slams & regional tournaments, ranking in the Top 3 teams of the Northeast! 🏅

At PVDFest, this five-member team of poets will convene one last time & share their electric art in the streets of downtown Providence. Come see for yourself why everyone’s talking about the 2025 ProvSlam Team! 🎤
christa .explicit

09/04/2025

PROVSLAM’S BACK! ❤️ OPEN MIC + CHAPBOOK RELEASE ft. 2025 TEAM! — Join us Thursday, September 4 at Main Stage as we kick off the 2025-2026 show season with our first open mic with a chapbook release & feature from the 2025 Providence Poetry Slam team, ranked top 3 in the Northeast! 🔥

HOMECOMING! 📕 The 2025 ProvSlam team members & cohort — Christa Coburn, Febo, GBRL, Michaelis & René Ramos — have dedicated this spring & summer to poetry on stage & on page. These five poets’ hard work & camaraderie culminate in a final OT5 performance together at their home venue as they launch their team chapbook, “How to Catch A Pig”! You simply can’t afford to miss this legendary team’s once-in-a-lifetime swan song.⚡️

SHOW! 🗣️ Sign-ups begin at 7:00pm + spots can fill up fast! 📋 Show begins at 8:00pm. 🕗 Suggested donation of $5-$10, but no one’s turned away for lack of funds! 📣 Enter through AS220 Restaurant + Bar to get to AS220 Main Stage (115 Empire St)!

OPEN MIC! 🎤 Open to all ages, open to all literary & music genres — poetry, prose, storytelling, music, rap, more! No covers, original work only. You have 5 minutes — we encourage you to be considerate of time! ⏰

07/17/2025

💜 OPEN MIC ft. ILYUS EVANDER — Make your way down to AS220 () TONIGHT Thursday, July 17th for a multi-genre open mic and feature from the beloved Ilyus Evander (.evander), our 2024 ProvSlam Grand Slam Champion! ⚡️ This will be our final show before we take our annual August break!

OPEN MIC — Doors open and sign-ups begin at 7:00pm. Show begins at 8:00pm. Suggested donation of $5-$10, but no one’s turned away for lack of funds! Open to all ages, open to all literary genres: poetry, prose, music, rap, more! No covers, original work only. You have 5 minutes — please be considerate of time! 🎤

Questions? DM us or email [email protected]! To learn more, visit provslam.org! 💌

ABOUT OUR FEATURE — Ilyus Evander (they/them) is a disabled, nonbinary mental health worker, educator, poet, and theater maker from Providence, RI. They have represented the Providence Poetry Slam at several National Poetry Tournaments including the National Poetry Slam, Brave New Voices, and the Women of the World Poetry Slam. They are the recipient of multiple awards for excellence in design from the Kennedy Center American College Theater Festival for their work on theatrical productions. Ilyus’ first original experimental play, “Somebody. Nobody.” is currently being workshopped for production with OutLoud Theater Company. They are the author of two poetry collections; Good Mourning, Bad Dreams (2022 Ginger Bug Press), and Heavier Than Wait (2020 Game Over Books). Most recently, Ilyus became the 2024 ProvSlam Grand Slam Champion, won the “Pushing the Art Forward” award at the 2024 NorthBeast Regional, and has published work with The Poetry Foundation (Ours Poetica), Button Poetry, and the Academy of American Poets (Poem-A-Day). Ilyus has toured the country teaching and performing poetry, theater, and accessibility in the arts workshops. They are so proud of you.

07/09/2025

ProvSlam competes this weekend July 12-13 at NorthBeast Poetry Slam & Festival!

Teams will gather from all over New England to lift each other and celebrate each other’s voices. Whether you’re a poetry fan, or a writer yourself, there’s something for everyone.

Saturday July 12: preliminary poetry slams begin at 12noon. ProvSlam is in the third bout at 3pm. Your ticket gives you full access to all bouts and a Haiku tournament!

Sunday July 13: workshops, poetry readings, and NorthBeast Finals! Workshops include two run by ProvSlam alums Ilyus Evander and Kenny Bradley

07/02/2025

Come join us at ProvSlam this summer! 🫧

🚫 Thursday: July 3rd, 2025
No Show

🏆 Saturday: July 12th, 2025
Northbeast Regional Poetry Slam & Festival
The Foundry: 101 Rogers St, Cambridge, MA
ProvSlam’s Preliminary Bout in Multi Room: 3 PM

🎤 Thursday: July 21st, 2025
Open Mic ft. TBD
Doors 7 PM + Show 8 PM
AS220 Main Stage: 115 Empire St
Suggested Donation: $5 to $10

💤 Thursday: August 7th, 2025
No Show: Annual August Break

💤 Thursday: August 21st, 2025
No Show: Annual August Break

🎤 Thursday: September 4th, 2025
Open Mic ft. 2025 Provslam Team
Doors 7 PM + Show 8 PM
AS220 Main Stage: 115 Empire St
Suggested Donation: $5 to $10

🎤 Thursday: September 18th, 2025
Open Mic + Qualifying Slam #1
Doors 7 PM + Show 8 PM
AS220 Main Stage: 115 Empire St
Suggested Donation: $5 to $10

06/17/2025

You’re invited to Juneteenth! An Evening of Black Storytelling! 🌟

Join us at AS220 () Main Stage (115 Empire St) for a showcase of local Black artists, writers, and performers curated by ProvSlam Co-Director Naffisatou Koulibaly (.affisatou)!

Starring: Kleo Sincere (), Vatic Kuumba (), Justice Ameer (), and Raffini from ! 🪩

Doors open and sign-ups for the open mic begin at 7 PM, with the show starting at 8 PM! 🍾

Suggested donation is $5 to $10 — proceeds directly support .youth’s food drive for ! 🫧

06/07/2025

You're invited to Juneteenth! An Evening of Black Storytelling! 🌟

Join us at AS220 Main Stage (115 Empire St) for a showcase of local Black artists, writers, and performers curated by ProvSlam Co-Director Naffisatou Koulibaly! Stay tuned for our star-studded line-up! 🪩

Doors open and sign-ups for the open mic begin at 7 PM, with the show starting at 8 PM! 🍾

Suggested donation is $5 to $10 — proceeds directly support AS220 Youth's food drive! 🫧

Providence Poetry Slam

10/09/2025

10/02/2025

09/16/2025

09/05/2025

09/04/2025

07/17/2025

07/09/2025

07/02/2025

06/17/2025

06/07/2025

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