A heartfelt poem and song won the day for 15-year-old Charis Brooks, who has been crowned Bermuda?s most talented teen.

Miss Brooks, a Bermuda High School student, will now travel to New York for the international stage of the Hal Jackson Talented Teen competition.

Her performance of an untitled poem about her mother along with the Natasha Bedingfield song impressed the judges in the local round at the Ruth Seaton James Centre for the Performing Arts on Saturday evening.

She had joined ten other young women aged 13 to 17 in the competition, which aims to showcase intelligence, talent and stage presence.

?It was exciting. We had been practising for about five months and the night was a really nice experience,? said Miss Brooks, from St. Michael?s Road, Paget.

?I was nervous before the competition but it went well and I was really proud of all of us. We were supportive of each other and have all become genuinely good friends.?

The teenager, who has no siblings, was watched by friends and family members including her mother Suzette Brooks and grandmother Celia Dawkins.

?I did tell my mom that the poem was about her but she didn?t hear it until the night,? she explained. ?I was searching for a song for the longest while, but I favoured over the rest because of the lyrics of the chorus - ? which I thought fitted the poem perfectly.?

The yearly Hal Jackson competition is presented by the ladies of Sigma Xi Omega Chapter of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Incorporated. This Greek-letter organisation was established in 1908 by and for black college-educated women. The Sigma Xi Omega Chapter in Bermuda was chartered in May 1990.

The run-up to the contest saw the young women participate in elocution, deportment and etiquette classes as well as workshops on food and nutrition, body image and choosing colleges. They held rehearsals on an almost daily basis in the week before the big night.

?It?s enhanced me as an individual,? said Miss Brooks, who lists her favourite school subjects as Spanish and Drama. She is considering a career as an interpreter or a guidance counsellor, and is currently exploring college and university options.

Meanwhile, she will also spend the coming weeks planning her trip to New York City where she will join more than 30 young women from around the world competing for the title Hal Jackson Talented Teen International on July 30.

?I?m excited about New York. During one of the rehearsals in February we were shown a video of the international competition and it looked like such a wonderful experience,? she said.