The 23rd Nimbin Performance Poetry World Cup concluded Sunday night after two days of poetry by 32 poets from as far away as Western Australia, Tasmania, Queensland, all over New South Wales and the local area.
This event is renowned for not only the high quality of poetry performed, but also the sense of community that happens when the poets and fans of poetry converge at Nimbin.
Four heats of eight poets were held on Saturday, with an incredibly diverse range of performers, aged from twenty to their 80s. The poets were given eight minutes to impress the judges, with audiences getting to hear bush, activist, rap, prose, narrative, comedic, slam, prose, rhyming, classical and experimental poetry styles.
Sixteen poets advanced to the hotly contested semifinals Sunday afternoon, where they were judged on the quality of their poetry, performance skills, timing and the reaction from audience.
The eight highest scoring poets earned a place in the Final Sunday night to compete for the coveted Cup and the first prize of $2,000.
The Winner of the 2026 Cup was Sydney poet Tug Dumbly, his fourth win, while Tasmanian wordsmith Thomas Bailey was awarded The People’s Choice Award.
You can find out more about the Nimbin Performance Poetry World Cup here.
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