Slam poetry is a form of poetry that combines acting and writing in hopes of taking down the barrier between a poet and his/her audience. On Feb. 4, the Slam Poetry team held a open mic night in the library.

Students from Lawrence and Olathe Northwest also came to share poetry. Breeaunna Dowdy, sophomore, attended the event.

“It went awesome,” Dowdy said. “There weren’t as many people there as I hoped, but there were still kids from other schools and we all got to perform.”

Many students from Lawrence who had planned to attend had gotten sick the day before the event, resulting in a smaller crowd.

“I thought it was a major success,” Cynthia Roth, Slam Poetry coach, said. “I felt we got to see a lot of different poetry.”

Approximately 10 performers did go from both Olathe South and other schools, and they all had fun, Dowdy said. Almost every poet shared at least two poems, if not more. Some audience members decided to join in as well.

“There was a 6- or 7-year-old girl who was inspired by her brother to go up and do an impromptu poem about a unicorn. That was my favorite, and it was adorable,” Dowdy said.

The team was using this night as a chance to practice for the upcoming slam poetry competition, Louder than a Bomb, in Kansas City, Mo., on March 7.

“That’s what it’s all about, sharing ideas, making friends and getting exposed to different view points,” Roth said.

The team hopes to hold events similar to this in the future. “The coach from Olathe Northwest said they might hold one [as well],” said Roth.