LEWISTON – Several area high-school students are among the 10 who will compete in the state finals for the Poetry Out Loud: National Recitation Contest Saturday, March 8, in Schaeffer Theatre at Bates College.

Competitors will recite classical poetry from memory in front of a live public audience. The winner of the finals will receive $200; the winner’s school will receive a $500 stipend to purchase poetry books. The second place finalist will receive $100, with $200 for his or her school library.

The winner will represent Maine in national finals in late April in Washington D.C., where prizes include $20,000 in scholarships.

The state finals will begin at 2 p.m. with remarks by Maine’s First Lady Karen Baldacci and Felicia Knight of the National Endowment for the Arts. The event is schedulded from 2 to 6 p.m. Admission is free.

The 10 finalists: Katie McKeown, 10th grade, Leavitt Area High School; Kelsey Linnell, 10th grade, Rangeley Lakes Regional School; Patricia Frey, 12th grade, Maranacook Community School; Devon Gamble, North Yarmouth Academy; Lydia McOscar, 12th grade, Bangor High School; Kristina King, 12th grade, Hampden Academy; Cara Adams, 12th grade, John Bapst Memorial High School; Katherine Reynolds, 11th grade, Erskine Academy; Conner Drigotas, 11th grade, Kennebunk High School; and Rose Honaker, 10th grade, Medomak Valley High School.