by Brendan O’Donnell ’16
Creative Saint Ignatius students from all artistic backgrounds will be performing for the public next weekend as part of Student Senate’s revival of the “Coffeehouse” event series. The festivities, according to senior organizer Vincent Hwang, are “a celebration of the arts that don’t get the attention that they need to get on our campus.”
Admission will be free and open to anyone, targeted towards a student audience, and coffee will be sold for 25 cents a cup. Senate spokesperson Dominic Gideon stressed that girls from area schools would be in attendance. The first show will be March 2nd from 7:00 pm to 9:00 pm in the Atrium.
Students from all grade levels are asked to perform at the event. Performances will include “bands, stand-up comedy, violinists, as well as some teachers [who will] read poetry and essays,” according to Hwang. “The added dimension to having teachers is to see them outside of the classroom,” said Hwang. “It’s a really different experience.”
Mr. Gallagher, English teacher and member of the class of 2004, once attended a Coffeehouse event and said he thoroughly enjoyed the experience.
“It was a fun way to see classmates and friends showcase their musical and poetic talents in a way that they don’t usually have an opportunity to do so,” Gallagher said. While he did not personally participate in the event, he did watch his fellow classmates perform. “I had friends who were musicians and really talented guys, and I came out to support them.”
Although Coffeehouse is a long-running tradition, it has not happened this decade, so the revived show will be a new experience for all students in St. Ignatius. “I’m really interested in seeing the talent that our school has to offer,” Hwang said, “outside of athletics and academics, that we don’t always get to see.”
