UVic students are invited to participate in a masterclass performance workshop for writers, led by "on the Verge" guest judge, Johnny D Trinh.

As writers develop and promote their work, they are often invited to perform readings at various events, book launches, open mics, artist talks, and more. Utilizing techniques, and strategies from theatre, spoken word, and public speaking; Johnny D Trinh will offer coaching on:

• How to engage an audience while maintaining your authentic self
• How to use a mic and sound system to benefit your story telling
• Practical physical, and vocal exercises/techniques that will improve your performance
• Performance coaching on actual excerpts of your work
• How to occupy and embody space on stage, with some tips on bantering and engaging audiences, and ways to keep the energy moving

How to prepare:

• Bring yourself, and be in comfortable clothing that allows you to move within your ability
• Bring a short excerpt of writing, between 1-3 minutes in length when read out loud

This event will be hybrid. Not everyone will receive direct coaching on the floor, but everyone will have the opportunity to work on practical performance techniques and share their work.

Johnny D Trinh is an interdisciplinary, spoken word artist based in Vancouver, British Columbia. Johnny is the Artistic Director of Vancouver Poetry House and Writer-in-Residence at the Moberly Arts and Cultural Centre. Johnny is also the Founder and Artistic Producer of Stage to Page Performance Society, bringing cross-disciplinary mentorship to help spoken word poets grow. Johnny’s pedagogy is rooted in the constant goal of fostering a sense of empowerment, agency, and compassion through socially engaged, community based art. Johnny recognizes that many of us are uninvited settlers on this Indigenous Turtle Island, and continually works to negotiate that through accountability, solidarity, and integrity of practice. Johnny holds a MFA in Interdisciplinary Studies from the University of Regina, a diploma in Music Theatre Performance from the Randolph College for the Performing Arts, and Hon. BA in Drama from the University of Waterloo. Johnny is member of the League of Canadian Poets, and alumni of the Banff Spoken Word Residency and Dell’Arte International School of Physical Theatre Summer Intensive, and a TEDxSurrey Speaker and Coach. “It takes a community to build an artist ... whether we are nurtured by it, or resist against it.”