KEC student finishes second at national poetry competition

East Kildonan

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This article was published 28/05/2025 (438 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

A Kildonan-East Collegiate student has placed second in this year’s national Poetry in Voice competition.

Heart Barabad, a Grade 12 student at KEC, took home second place honours at the Centre Theatre for Performing Arts in Vancouver, B.C., recently, which included a $2,000 cash prize, for her performance reciting English poetry.

“It was amazing,” Barabad said. “Last year, I submitted for the online submissions, as well, but only placed in the semifinals. I found out from my teacher that I’d made it past and gotten to the finals. When I heard that news, I was so excited. I was so happy to share that with her.”

“Ever since I’ve met her, (Barabad) is devoted to doing her best,” said Tannis Francis, an English and drama teacher at KEC who has been involved with the Poetry in Voice competition for the past eight years. “What a gift that is, to have that type of passion, and what a joy to work with. Whatever rehearsal, she’s going to come prepared and be open to direction, she will ask questions. She’s so open to trying something new. She’s a remarkable young woman. She certainly has a gift.”

This year, over 10,000 students participated in school competitions nationwide and the online qualifiers. The top 24 then moved onto the online semifinals, with the final nine heading to Vancouver to perform in front of 1,500 people. Esteemed poets Wayde Compton, Evelyn Lau and Jane Munro judged the English stream.

“The finals were so fun,” Barabad said. “To be in such a comfortable environment around poetry was very nice, and soothing to be able to talk about it. Everyone was so nice. It made everything very fun.”

“It brings very like-minded people together,” Francis said. “It celebrates poetry, but also the courage it takes to say someone else’s words. Teenagers are always looking for a safe space to express themselves and perform.”

Barabad performed Fear of Snakes by Lorna Crozier and From the Catalogue of Cruelty by Donika Kelly for her initial submissions, then Question by Susan Musgrave.

“Fear of Snakes was one of the first poems I ever chose, when I was in Grade 10,” Barabad said. “It was the story that resonated inside of me. I’m not the best at interpreting the meanings behind the poems. But it’s the emotions in the poems that draws me to them … I really just want to get my interpretation down, to convey what I feel when I read these poems and do them justice.”

“I love that the Poetry in Voice focus is on the teenage voice,” Francis added. “As a high school teacher, so much of poetry that we read or that is celebrated, at least in my era, was of older voices. It’s so fun and inspiring to watch these teenagers take these poems — from the anthology that Poetry in Voice focuses on — and interpreting them to make sense to themselves. I love watching them tackle contemporary and classic work and make those connections.”

“When I heard that news, I was so excited.

Barabad’s second place finish marks the fourth time a student from KEC has made it to the finals, a feat for which Francis said the school takes great pride.

“When your peer has achieved a national recognition, from our small little school here in Manitoba, it makes it plausible that it is an opportunity that’s open to you. Look what KE did!” she said. “We’ve gone to the national stage four times. Each time someone has gone there, it solidifies to your peers that KE has the talent and will put forth the effort to shine on stage across the country. As soon as you have one person, you can say, ‘I’m here. You can do it to.’”

“I just want to say that for people who might be hesitant to try things outside of your comfort zone, don’t knock it until you try it,” Barabad added.

Isabella Torres Rangel, from All Saints High School in Calgary, Alta., won first place in the English stream, while Annabel Wood, from École Secondaire Mont-Bleu in Gatineau, Que., finished third.