Poet Sunni Patterson in residence for 2011 WordSpeak

Words are powerful tools for self-expression and for changing the world. New Orleans-based (from the lower Ninth Ward), African-American performer and award-winning poet Sunni Patterson brings a warm spirit, stirring lyrics and passionate performance to her work. WordSpeak, a project for teens, includes workshops, slams and performances. Sunni has been featured at HBO's Russell Simmons Presents Def Poetry and worked with well-known artists and performers including Hannibal Lokumbe, Kalamu Ya Salaam, Sonia Sanchez, Wanda Coleman, and Amiri Baraka, among others. Sunni Patterson comes to Miami to launch the sixth year of Tigertail's WordSpeak, an ongoing spoken word program for South Florida teens. Sunni will be in Miami from March 28 - April 1, 2011 for a residency that includes school and community-based workshops and readings.

During her residency week, Sunni will perform and lead workshops for students at DASH, Miami Arts Charter, Miami Northwestern Senior, Miami Senior High School and North Miami Beach High School. These WordSpeak events provide Miami teens the opportunity to learn more about spoken word as a way to express themselves, in an appealing medium that blends poetry, theater and hip hop culture.

Sunni Patterson's Miami visit culminates in an exciting WordSpeak open mic and slam for teens led by Sunni and South Florida-based guest artists at the Miami Beach Regional Library, 227 22nd Street (just west of Collins Avenue) on Thursday, March 31, 2011 at 6:00 pm. A second open mic and slam will take place at the same location, Thursday, April 14 at 6:00pm led by Teo Castellanos. This is an opportunity for teens from 13 to 19 years old to read and perform their poetry in front of an audience. The slam is the first in a series of competitions to win a place on the Miami team sponsored by Tigertail Productions that will travel to San Francisco this summer for the Brave New Voices International Youth Poetry Slam Festival. "It is spoken word poetry that has enabled me to understand the value of respecting my own words. The beauty of being a spoken word artist lies in the ability to believe in what you say and engage a group of strangers to not only do the same but enjoy this gesture of sharing," said Yarminiah Rosa, a 2010 WordSpeak team member.

Sunni Patterson will also give a reading and perform free for the general public at the Coral Gables Books and Books, 265 Aragon Avenue, on Friday, April 1 at 8:00 pm. Said Mary Luft, Tigertail Productions' Executive Director, "WordSpeak is an astounding transformative project and Sunni Patterson is an artist who will challenge and inspire."

Targeted support for WordSpeak and the Sunni Patterson residency comes from Books & Books, The Children's Trust, E.S. Moore Family Foundation, Miami-Dade County Department of Cultural Affairs and the Mayor and Board of County Commissioners, City of Miami Beach Cultural Affairs Program, Cultural Arts Council, Miami Dade Public Library, Miami Dade Public Schools, Miami River Inn, National Performance Network with major funding from the Doris Duke Charitable Foundation, Ford Foundation, the National Endowment for the Arts (a federal agency), Altria, MetLife Foundation and the Nathan Cummings Foundation; and Publix Super Markets Charities.

Tigertail's 2010/2011 Season is made possible by community partners and supporters including the Albion Hotel; Aquarius Press; Arthur F. and Alice E. Adams Charitable Foundation; Barefoot Wine & Bubbly; Biscayne Times; Books & Books; Bresaro Suites at the Mantell Plaza; Cafeina; The Children's Trust; Citizens Interested in the Arts; City of Coral Gables Cultural Arts Program; City of Miami Beach Cultural Affairs Program, Cultural Arts Council; Consulate General of the Netherlands; The Miami Foundation; E.S. Moore Family Foundation; Florida Dance Association; Florida Department of State, Division of Cultural Affairs and the Florida Arts Council; Florida Literary Center; Funding Arts Network; Galeria del Sol; The Galler Group; Greater Miami Convention and Visitors Bureau; MiamiARTzine.com; Miami Salon Group; Miami-Dade County Department of Cultural Affairs and the Mayor and Board of County Commissioners; Miami-Dade County Public Library; Miami-Dade County Public Schools; Miami River Inn; National Dance Project of the New England Foundation for the Arts, with lead funding from the Doris Duke Charitable Foundation, additional funding provided by The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, The Ford Foundation and the Community Connections Fund of the MetLife Foundation and the Boeing Company Charitable Trust; National Endowment for the Arts; National Performance Network with major funding from the Doris Duke Charitable Foundation, Ford Foundation, the National Endowment for the Arts (a federal agency), Altria, MetLife Foundation and the Nathan Cummings Foundation; The New Hotel; Pridelines; Publix Super Markets Charities; Rain Organics; Safe Schools South Florida; The Law Office of Linda M. Smith; South Arts; Vortex Communications; VSA Arts of Florida; Wachovia, A Wells Fargo Company; WDNA & WLRN FM and many individual supporters.