Heilbronn Poetry Slam

At a poetry slam, self-written literature is performed on stage in competition. The audience acts as the jury and decides the victory or defeat of the slam poets through applause. For many years, the cultural center Maschinenfabrik – formerly known as the Popbüro Heilbronn-Franken – has been hosting the HEILBRONNER POETRY SLAM. In a poetry slam (roughly: poets' competition or poets' battle), self-written literature (in English: poetry) is performed on stage in a contest (in English: slam). The audience serves as the jury and decides, for example, through applause who wins or loses among the slam poets. The texts can be lyrical or humorous, rhymed or rapped, critical or dadaistic. The audience is diverse – from teenagers to retirees, poetry slams captivate many people. This event format originated in Chicago in 1986 and spread worldwide in the 1990s. The German-speaking slam scene is considered the second largest in the world after the English-speaking scene.