Annual recitation contests are in full swing.

The 10^th Annual Poetry Out Loud (POL) competition accepted applications until Nov. 30. Students needed to find the allowed poems, videos of past performances, helpful tips, and the full list of eligibility rules on the POL website.

Participating students will need to memorize a poem from POL’s anthology and perform it during seminar on Dec. 7 in the Black Box Theater.

The winner of South’s competition will then go on to perform at regionals. State and nationals follow for those who qualify. The national winner will receive a $20,000 scholarship.

South has had many contestants move past regionals. One of these students is Khadija Ceesay, junior, who won regionals in 2016.

Ceesay advises all performers to “practice their lines until you know them like the back of their hand. It’s also important to process how to act out the emotions and make your audience feel your poem too.”

She will be competing in the Shakespeare contest this year.

Entry forms for the 12^th Annual Shakespeare Contest, available from English or theater teachers, are due Dec. 8. Students will need to memorize a monologue from one of Shakespeare’s plays and perform it during seminar on Dec. 15 in the Black Box Theater.

For questions about the POL competition or the Shakespeare contest, students should contact their English or theater teachers.