veRse

Spoken Word Artist, Poet, Feminist, Lyrical and Full of Verse... veRse first began performing in March 2005 after being introduced to the London scene by the talented poet, Ebele Ajogbe. She has since performed at Poetry N' Motion (Motion Bar next to Embankment) for three consecutive years, Kindred Spirit, Acoustic Sundays, Aesthetic Sounds, Speakeasy, The Fridge Bar, 'Youthful Words' at Stratford East as Guest Performance, 'So Near Yet So Far Vol. 1' at the Gladys Alyward Theatre, Abdulis Restaurant, Word Up and Word 4 Word with Kat Francois, Loose Muse, Poetry Unplugged, PoeJazzi and a wealth of other London Shows. She has also toured in Berlin in May 2006 with Flo (myspace.com/dopethoughtfactory), as well as won the Castello di Duino competition in Trieste Italy with her first prize winning poem 'Elements of A Negro Corner' which hosted 800 other poets from 64 other countries. She continued this feat, by traveling to Botswana in the Summer of 2006 to be featured on Gaborone Television and Radio. She also ran workshops for refugees by working in conjuntion with the Medical Foundation in London, along with workshops in prisons. Verse has expanded her work beyond the stage to the classroom, prisons and other venues. During June 2005, she directed and hosted 'Teen Verse Night' for teenagers in her home of Durham, North Carolina. The good turnout inspired other poets to take on the task of inviting more young poets in the local area to the scene and influence the community with spoken word. Since returning to the United States, she has dabbled in Oakland and slammed in Dallas and Austin, TX with the Fort Worth Slam Team. She also does workshops for youth and adults about the mechanics of poetry and performance, but also provides mentorship and assistance in academics and counselling.------------------------------------------------ ------------------------------------------------------------ ---------------Aside from poetry, journalism and writing, Verse has traveled the world to touch other cultures and beings. In 2005, she travelled with students from the international school known as United World College of the Atlantic (located in Llantwit Major Wales) to teach the basics of English to Chinese students. C.H.I.N.A. (Creating Hope and Inspiring New Action) Project 2005 travelled thoroughout southeastern Guizhou province to work with students in secondary schools and visit local villages to better understand the lives of ethnic minorities, such as the Mongols and the Miao. In 2006, she went to South Africa to work in Baranwanath hospital with children suffering from leukemia and other cancers. After this trip she decided to continue her work this summer by partnering with FORGE.------------------------------------------------------ ------------------------------------------------------------ ----------------------------------------------------FORGE, WHICH IS A NON-PROFIT 501 (c)(3) organization and an official partner of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR). She was invited to be apart of the organization in November 2006. FORGE was started in 2003 by Kjerstin Erickson who was a Stanford student concerned about refugees and politics in Africa. She has been running the organization for four years now, by taking students from Stanford, Northeastern, Harvard, Georgetown and UCLA to work in Mwange, Meheba and Kala Refugee camps. Verse was invited to work with FORGE under women's rights and empowerment. She has since completed her trip and is now headed to London to continue working on her upcoming poetry book and other projects. -----------------------------------------Thanks again for your support! www.FORGEnow.org