Providence Poetry Slam

Providence Poetry Slam Longest running poetry slam & open mic venue in Rhode Island! Every 1st and 3rd Thursday at AS220!

Speaking truth to power since 1992!

✊🏿 ✊🏾 ✊🏽 🏳️‍🌈 🏳️‍⚧️ 🍉

⚓️ 🎤

SEMI-FINAL SLAM A + OPEN MIC! — See you Thursday, November 20th at Main Stage for Semi-Finals A, where the top competi...
11/12/2025

SEMI-FINAL SLAM A + OPEN MIC! — See you Thursday, November 20th at Main Stage for Semi-Finals A, where the top competitors from September and October’s qualifiers will battle it out! ✨ 8 poets compete. 4 advance to Grand Slam Finals in March!

🎖️

MEET THE SEMI-FINALISTS: Christa (.christa). Dameien (). Febo (). Helen. Jamie (.jung). Michaelis (.explicit). Mr. Orange (). René ().

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At 7:00 PM, doors to AS220 Main Stage open, + sign-up lists for the Open Mic 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.

This week’s slam is *NOT* an open slam. Instead, it is a Semi-Final slam that convenes the Top 4 poets from Team Qualifier #1 in September and the Top 4 poets from Team Qualifier #2 in October. The Top 4 of Semi Final A advance to compete for a spot on the team at Grand Slam Finals on March 19th, 2025. The poets who do not advance are eligible to re-qualify in Team Qualifiers #3 and #4.

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UPCOMING POETRY SLAM DATES:

Team Qualifier #3 - December 18th, 2025
Team Qualifier #4 - January 15th, 2026
Semi-Finals B - February 19th, 2026
Grand Slam Finals - March 19th, 2026

- Top 4 poets from Team Qualifier #3 and Team Qualifier #4 advance to Semi-Finals B on November 20th
- Top 4 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]

🏅

🌟 OPEN MIC ft. PARKER-VINCENT ALVA, THE BOSTON YOUTH POET LAUREATE — Come down to AS220 Main Stage () TONIGHT Thursday, ...
11/06/2025

🌟 OPEN MIC ft. PARKER-VINCENT ALVA, THE BOSTON YOUTH POET LAUREATE — Come down to AS220 Main Stage () TONIGHT Thursday, November 6th for an all-ages, multi-genre open mic and feature from Parker-Vincent Alva ()!

🍿

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 — Parker-Vincent Alva is a student and writer from Boston, MA. He is the third Youth Poet Laureate of the city and an impassioned AMC A-Lister. His debut chapbook, CARNIVORES, was published in August 2025.

😹



💃

OPEN MIC + TEAM QUALIFIER POETRY SLAM #2!— See you TONIGHT Thursday, October 16th at Main Stage! This is your final of...
10/16/2025

OPEN MIC + TEAM QUALIFIER POETRY SLAM #2!— See you TONIGHT 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

🏅

OPEN MIC + TEAM QUALIFIER POETRY SLAM #2!— See you Thursday, October 16th at Main Stage! This is your final of two cha...
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

🏅

🔑 OPEN MIC ft. ROMAN JOHNSON, PHD — Come down to AS220 Main Stage () TONIGHT Thursday, October 2nd for a multi-genre ope...
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.

😈

OPEN MIC + TEAM QUALIFIER POETRY SLAM #1! — Kick off our 2025-2026 slam season this Thursday, September 18th at AS220 M...
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

🏅

The final performance of the 2025 Providence Poetry Slam Team! 💥 Meet our beloved poets downtown at the FREE .fest — Sat...
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

Address

115 Empire Street
West Warwick, RI
02903

Opening Hours

7:30pm - 10pm

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