Professors, students entertain in Wordfest's 'Cabaret'

Wed, October 21, 2009 |

Valparaiso University professors and students will present an evening of entertaining performances, music, prose and short films at the Valpo Cabaret on Oct. 24. Sponsored by Valpo's annual Wordfest literary series and The Lighter, its undergraduate literary journal, the event will be held in the Mueller Hall Refectory from 6 to 9 p.m. and is free and open the public.

One feature of the cabaret is the use of new media to bring literature to new life, said Allison Schuette-Hoffman, assistant professor of English.

"I've been interested in using the Cabaret as an event for performance and for being playful," said Schuette-Hoffman. "It's a way to reach beyond other Wordfest events such as poetry and prose readings and include other art forms."

Three Valpo seniors – Kris Adamik of Chesterton, a new media-journalism major; Sarah Beckerman of Anderson, a theatre and English major; and Abby Gilchrist of La Porte, an English major – worked together to create a short film that discusses the progression of language during the past 400 years.

"We recognize that the English language and how we speak and write has certainly changed since Shakespearean times, and we represent this evolution through quotes about love," said Adamik. "From lines of 'Hamlet' to lyrics from Beyonce's 'Crazy in Love,' the video shows confessions of love from a variety of media."

Adamik also said the team wanted the presentation of the quotes to be visually interesting, so they used unconventional methods of displaying the quotes, from creating the text using Scrabble letters to actually writing on the bare back of one of the group members with a black marker.

Another new media project is a visual ghost story, co-written by recent Valpo graduate Evan Scott Bryson and faculty members Liz Wuerffel and Schuette-Hoffman. The video will include a slide show of images, accompanied by music.

Schuette-Hoffman says because the event takes place one week before Halloween, the Cabaret will include some ghost stories as well as a jack-o-lantern "juried art show," and audience members will vote for their favorites during intermission.

Wordfest is an annual series of readings, lectures and discussions by practicing writers of poetry, drama, fiction and nonfiction prose. In both the fall and spring semesters, professional writers present their own creative works to stimulate students' writing. These artists often visit classes, hold workshops and work with interested student writers.

More information about Wordfest can be found at http://www.valpo.edu/english/events/wordfest.php.