Students Share Work at Open Mic Night

Starting around 6:15 on Thursday night, students filtered into SDA’s learning commons, ready to participate in one of Creative Writing Club’s after school Open Mic Nights.

The signup sheet sat on the main desk, waiting for students — or anyone who chose — to write down their name. The list slowly filled up as people milled around the room, mingling and finding a place in the rows of seats.

Around 6:40, senior Emma Toscani, co-president of the Creative Writing club and MC for the night’s entertainment, directed everyone to their seats, and the reading began.

Most performers were students at SDA, although there were a few students from other schools. Creative writing teacher Robert Ross and English teacher Yoshiye LeaVesseur also presented their own writing towards the end of the night. Most read poems, but a few read excerpts from novels and novellas.

In standard Open Mic Night procedure, the crowd snapped during parts of presentations that they liked. When each person finished, the crowd applauded uproariously. Throughout the night, people occasionally slipped to the side of the room to make a cup of tea or hot chocolate, or to grab some food.

In reference to how he felt while reading, junior Hunter McGahan said, “[Presenting] wasn’t difficult because I knew the type of people who would go to these types of things, so I felt comfortable sharing.”

Halfway through the Open Mic, the power went off and the group moved outside to the Learning Commons stairs where presenters read under the beautiful, pink sunset. Once the power turned back on, the crowd returned inside to finish the open mic.

It was senior Ashley Sayers’ first open mic night, and she said, “I love the honest atmosphere and how everyone is very willing to share things that might be more personal than they’re willing to share during school, during class.”

The night finishes at 8:30 with a poem by famous poet, Sylvia Plath, read by Toscani.