CivitaquanaPoesia National Prize

A poetry prize in the heart of Abruzzo

The CivitaquanaPoesia National Prize is a national literary competition dedicated to unpublished poetry, designed to promote poetic creativity and embed literary culture into the daily life of Civitaquana, a small town in the hinterland of the Province of Pescara, in Abruzzo. Promoted by the Pescarabruzzo Foundation in collaboration with the Municipality of Civitaquana, the prize was established in 2025 and is part of the broader Civitaquana Village of Poetry project.

Competition categories

The prize is open to everyone and is divided into two distinct categories:

• Adult category: unpublished poems on a free theme, with a maximum length of thirty lines;
• Student category: reserved for primary and secondary school pupils in the province of Pescara, to introduce younger generations to poetic writing.

Participation is free and works must be submitted exclusively via email. A jury of experts selects the winning texts, which receive cash prizes along with special awards and honorable mentions.

The awards ceremony

The highlight of the event is the awards ceremony, which takes place at the end of August in the Basilica of Santa Maria delle Grazie, one of the most important Romanesque churches in Abruzzo, founded by the Benedictines in the 12th century and now recognized as a national monument. The evening combines the reading of the winning verses with performances, including recitations and musical interludes, making the ceremony a true cultural event for the village.

The Civitaquana Village of Poetry project

The prize is the heart of a larger project that includes two permanent initiatives: the Poetry Avenue, an open-air path along Via Roma enriched each year by installations dedicated to poets awarded the "CivitaquanaPoesia Lifetime Achievement" prize, and the future Poetry Library, a center dedicated to collecting and studying contemporary poetic production. The goal, as the Foundation emphasizes, is to build a cultural model that makes poetry accessible and deeply rooted in the territory.

Why participate

CivitaquanaPoesia is a valuable opportunity for both established and emerging poets, as well as for visitors who want to discover an authentic corner of the Abruzzo hinterland. The combination of the competition's quality, the beauty of the medieval village, and the setting of the Romanesque Basilica makes this prize a growing fixture in the cultural landscape of the Province of Pescara.