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Marfa High School One-Act Plays

 

Marfa Live Arts presents 

in association with Marfa Education Foundation:

Wednesday, February 4, 2015, 7:00p

Crowley Theater, Marfa

Free event.

 

Seventy-three Marfa High School students wrote one-act plays during the Marfa Live Arts Playwright/Playwriting 4th annual workshop at MISD. The 2015 workshop was taught by Liz Castillo, playwright in residence at Sul Ross University. Students were led through a series of creative writing exercises, characters were developed, imaginations were unleashed and the results were extraordinary.  “It’s not just about increasing their writing skills, but it’s about giving them a sense of belonging,” Castillo said. “It’s about telling them that they matter, and it’s about telling them that their stories matter, and that we care about what they have to say.”

 

 “When students are given the creative tools to reach and expand they end up searching deep within, finding their authentic voice -- which is a powerful resource that can serve them all their lives,” according to Marfa Live Arts director Jennie Lyn Hamilton, “I believe these artistic learning opportunities have long-lasting impacts on the overall educational and emotional development of these exceptional students.”  

 

One winning play was selected from each grade (the senior class had a tie) to have a staged reading. Student playwrights will direct their one-acts with both adult and student actors bringing their work to life at the Crowley Theater on February 4th. 

 

Winning playwrights are: Alan Alfaro, Nohely Ramirez,  Amber Olivera, Orlando Sanchez and Caleb Seegers. Honorable Mention playwrights are: Adrianna Pineda, Gisselle Lujan, Aaliyah Sanchez, Isaiah Martinez and Brianna Vasquez. The winning artist who made the poster is Dillon Orr. Honorable mention artwork that will be the program design was made by Suzzette Sanchez. Vicente Guevara will run the lights.

 

Students have written 312 plays as part of this annual workshop during the past four years. With each year of this program, students become more engaged, more focused and much better writers. A level of student pride and ownership occurs that is not often experienced according to administrators, teachers and parents. Nohely Ramirez, a sophomore said, “It’s truly helped me with my writing and made me think about how I write and how I express feelings. It truly has changed me…it’s been a really good experience.” 

 

Marfa Live Arts’ primary educational goal is to expose and teach performing arts and arts education to the children of Marfa, providing them with tools to build self-confidence and teach critical thinking skills to better improve their future outcomes. 

 

Produced by Marfa Live Arts in association with the Marfa Education Foundation.

 

Special thanks to: Liz Castillo, Andrew Peters, Mary Paul, Linda Ojeda, Mary Boyd, Suzi Gruschkus, Crowley Theater, Brown Foundation, Marfa Education Foundation, Marfa Public Radio, Big Bend Sentinel, Sul Ross Theater Department and MISD. Photography by Jessica Lutz

 

 

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