EMU student Ashleigh Smith reviews the Creative Writing Department’s Fall 2010 Capstone reading:
I thought the Creative Writing department’s student reading was really interesting. It’s always fun to see and hear what my peers are doing. One of the performances that really stood out to me was Tim’s video. I was really blown away by his singing (I think he was singing) and the rich language of the lyrics he’d written. I thought the combination of old and new images was spectacular. I have to admit, when he was giving an introduction to his piece I rolled my eyes at the thought of family photos from a cottage and some songs he had written himself. I ended up really enjoying Tim’s work and would be excited to see and hear more.
Another student read the ending section of a short story she wrote about her experience as a graduating senior. I thought the story was very touching and suspenseful. I was left wondering if the story was true, based on a true story, or just fiction. I thought her writing was very clear and thoughtful. I especially liked the way she put together the dialogue. I also really liked Stacy’s poetry which was inspired by the mixed media class I was in with her. I the poems she read were really thoughtful and creative. I thought her use of the juxtaposition nature and industry was really intriguing.
The gallery setting was perfect for a reading like this, except when it came to audio visual elements. I’d heard about Mike’s audio piece earlier in the week and really didn’t know what to expect. After a lot of fiddling around with his equipment he ended up giving a pretty cool snippet of his performance. I thought his concept was really interesting and innovative. Using language to make a rhythm is something people usually attribute rap music with but I thought this was a pretty cool spin on it. I wish the technical aspect of the performance would’ve worked out the way it was supposed to, but I commend him on giving it 100%!