déclamer

To declaim — to recite a poem, a speech, or a text aloud in an emphatic, theatrical manner (déclamer un poème) — distinct from the neutral réciter (to recite from memory, e.g. a school lesson), and it often carries a slightly negative connotation of pompous, exaggerated delivery.

• L'acteur déclamait ses vers avec beaucoup d'emphase. — The actor declaimed his lines with great flourish.
• Il aime déclamer de la poésie devant ses amis. — He likes to declaim poetry in front of his friends.
• Le politicien déclamait son discours plus qu'il ne le prononçait naturellement. — The politician was declaiming his speech rather than delivering it naturally.

Don't use déclamer for ordinary recitation, like a child reciting a memorized poem at school (réciter) — déclamer specifically implies a theatrical, oratorical style, sometimes even a pejorative one (overly grandiloquent delivery).

Often confused with réciter.