FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Michael Hamad – mhamad@eastconn.org
860-455-1506
Creative writers at ACT performing arts magnet high school to host Coffeehouse: From Within These Walls on Feb. 9
Willimantic, CT – Creative writers at EASTCONN’s Arts at the Capitol Theater (ACT) magnet high school in Willimantic are excited to host “Coffeehouse: From Within These Walls,” an annual showcase of student work, on Feb. 9 at 6 p.m. Tickets are $5.
“Coffeehouse: From Within These Walls” represents many hours of hard work by ACT Creative Writing pathway majors. To create new works of fiction and poetry, students participated in an active writing process from drafting to workshopping, editing and revising, building pieces from the ground up while making sure every word was in the right place and every line was structurally sound.
Beyond the individual pieces, audience members will be treated to two collaborative poems: one written by our newest members in the Creative Writing 1/2 class, and the other written by seniors in the Creative Writing 3 class, made up from phrases and lines that visitors created at the Magnetic Poetry Table during ACT’s 20th Anniversary Gala last November.
“ACT creative writers have been working hard to create and publish work at an exemplary level,” said Sarah Mallory, ACT Principal. “Our writers have demonstrated dedication and focus this school year, as each student has finalized work to a level ready to be published and performed.”
Creative Writing is one of seven arts disciplines offered at ACT; other pathways include Acting, Dance, Integrated Arts & Management, Media Arts, Music and Technical Theater (sets, lighting and costuming). Each year, ACT writers are recognized in regional contests, including the Scholastic Writing Awards, The Eastern Literary Festival for High School Students, Breadloaf, NEATE, CWP, and more.
Many ACT students continue to write after high school, following a variety of pathways in college and beyond, while others use the skills they learn at ACT to help them communicate clearly, observe small details that make big impacts, and solve problems creatively.
Housed in Willimantic’s historic Capitol Theater, ACT enrolls students from eastern Connecticut in its NEASC-accredited, interdisciplinary and arts-infused academic program. Each grade is about 35 students, making ACT an intimate, focused, artistic learning environment. To enroll, students can visit www.eastconn.org/act for an application.
EASTCONN, which administers ACT, is a public, non-profit Regional Educational Service Center that has been serving the education needs of northeastern Connecticut’s schools and communities since 1980. Learn more at www.eastconn.org.
