POLA FANOUS

Pola Fanous is a Coptic Orthodox spoken word poet, rap artist, educator, and activist from Western Sydney.

An Egyptian-born immigrant, Pola picked up his pen at age 14 and hasn't put it down since. At age 22, he is a well-loved member of Sydney's Spoken Word scene and has featured at the Parramatta, Granville, and Bankstown Poetry Slams, as well as at schools, rallies, and conferences state-wide.

In 2016, Pola competed in the Poetry Olympics at the Art Gallery of NSW and spoke at the City of Sydney's Youth Leadership Conference. In 2017, Pola's poem Mr War (Palestine) was incorporated into Warren Armstrong and Susannah Williams' multi-sensory artwork: Listening Device VII: Felt Histories, which went on to be awarded the 2017 Paramor Prize for Art & Innovation. 2017 also saw Pola published in The Resurrection and performing on bigger and more diverse stages, including at the Digital Writers' Festival, The Plot Music Festival, the BPS Grand Slam, and the Parliament House of Australia.

In 2018, Pola competed in the Australian Poetry Slam Final at the Sydney Opera House, where he was declared the 2018 NSW Slam Champion! As the NSW Champ, Pola published his debut collection of poetry – STRONGSOFT – an astonishing collection on the wondrous synergy of strength and softness. He also embarked on his first National Tour, headlining gigs in Melbourne, Brisbane, and Tasmania. Next, he set his sights on theatre and film: Pola played Merc – the protagonist in Herbert Leota's 2019 short film: Concrete Roses. Pola also performed 4 shows as the storyteller of Encounter – a contemporary dance work directed by Emma Saunders. The project involved a 2-year creative process, thousands of hours of work, 8 dancers from Western Sydney, 8 dancers from the Bega Valley, and a 40-piece Youth Orchestra! Encounter was the face of Western Sydney at the 2020 Sydney Festival and won't be forgotten soon.

Pola's second book, a devotional titled Abba Father: Discovering the Father's Love, was published in 2021 by St Shenouda Press. In 2021, Pola graduated from the University of Sydney with a Bachelor of Arts (English), where he was awarded the Thomas Henry Coulson Scholarship and the Walter Reid Memorial Prize. Pola is currently an Associate in Teach for Australia's award-winning Leadership Development Program, which sees him studying his Masters in Education (Leading Learning) on scholarship at ACU whilst working as an English Teacher in the public school system in Regional Victoria (Echuca).

Pola continues to use the power of words to inspire and empower young people, as an artist, an author & an educator.