By Arion Alston

Working with middle school students and young adults for the Art and Poetry Showcase was a considerably rewarding and educational experience for me. The five middle school students I had the privilege of coaching were diligent, self-directed, enthusiastic, and above all they exhibited one of the most important aspects of performance studies: an ensemble spirit with their fellow performers.  

That is quite the reverse of the generally accepted negative narrative of our under-represented adolescents in contemporary discourse. The two young adults in the showcase were an absolute joy to work with, and especially to converse with about their experiences. I was amused, but also concerned, in my first interviews with them. In order to decide if they were eligible for the production, I had to ask them about their experiences with the juvenile justice system. Not knowing we were looking for young people with direct involvement in the system, they either denied or downplayed their experiences. I had to reassure them we did not consider their experiences a taint on their character, but rather a badge of wisdom we wanted them to share with the community.  

This reassured them of the theme and intent of the showcase, and they became enthusiastic about sharing their stories. Their eyes lit up at the opportunity and were not only forthcoming, but also eloquent and expansive regarding their experiences. I am especially thankful to Aubrey Edwards-Luce and Professor Shanta Trivedi for incorporating art, poetry and personal narrative into the symposium this year. This afforded our young people the opportunity to express themselves and hone their presentational skills – an often-neglected element of school curricula.