Creativity and diversity will be celebrated at the annual Sign Poetry Festival tomorrow.
The full-day event will feature workshops, an open-mic session, guest speakers and performances by internationally known poets. The festival is organised by the Lamp Trust Aotearoa and chairman and event creative director Sam Hema said it was a chance to hear original work.
"[It is] slam poetry, a style that is delivered in a certain way where there is a set of rules on how it's done, but it is spoken word poetry. It's recited in a way that is very raw and organic as far as the context and the style," Mr Hema said.
"Poetry is a powerful way in telling our stories, you just tell your message the way you want to, our deaf community has stories, our poets have stories and it's about sharing them.
"It's forming a connection with our creative culture and encourages the use of the official languages of Aotearoa - sign language, Maori and English."
Mr Hema said participants both deaf and hearing could explore the fundamentals of sign language, with workshops on offer.
Musician and performer King Kapisi will also host a performance session. Poets and co-founders of Niu Navigations, which promotes Aotearoa and Pacific poetry, Daren Kamali and Grace Taylor will run the spoken word workshops.
Other performers include international sign language interpreter, facilitator and speaker Zane Hema, composer and kapa haka leader Jeff Ruha and musician Ryan Monga from band Ardijah.
The festival will also be used to honour the achievements of Rotorua's Koha Shed, Mr Hema said. Entry is by donation with the money going towards the shed.
Details
What: Sign Poetry Festival.
When: Tomorrow, 10am to 5pm.
Where: Rotorua Civic Theatre and Convention Centre.
Cost: Donation