Words will be flying when several dozen high school students from across southwestern B.C. meet for an upcoming slam-poetry event.

Hullabaloo, the third-annual B.C. Youth Spoken Word Festival, kicks off this week at the Roundhouse Community Arts and Recreation Centre in Vancouver.

Festival co-founder R.C. Weslowski said the event is all about giving youth a chance to develop their creative side and express themselves.

“Young people can feel like they’re not being listened to when they have ideas about…how the world can work,” he told the Straight by phone.

“Here we give them an opportunity to do it creatively and artistically. Their opinions are validated.”

The festival features an audience-judged, four-round competition between 16 teams representing schools from Metro Vancouver and Vancouver Island. There are also creative workshops and events featuring champion slam poets Amy Everhart and Truth Is.

Weslowski said the festival is open to everyone from seasoned slam poets to beginners.

New this year, all of the events are taking place at the Roundhouse in Yaletown.

“The first two years we were kind of at different venues,” Weslowski said. “We were at the art gallery and we were on the Drive. It was kind of a little tougher to keep the momentum going.”

“I think it’ll be very beneficial to have it all in one location.”

Slam poetry is thriving in the city and beyond, according to Weslowski. He pointed to the popularity of the monthly Vancouver Youth Poetry Slam events on Commercial Drive, which he organizes.

“It’s definitely growing and it’s pretty big in Vancouver and the Metro Vancouver area,” Weslowski said.

Hullabaloo, the B.C. Youth Spoken Word Festival, takes place April 3-6.