The Waltonian

After about a million repeats of Elgar’s “Pomp & Circumstance,” students graduated from Eastern University at The Mann Center in Philly. These graduates included undergraduates, associates, master’s, PhDs and honorary PhDs, all with a mixture of online and fully in-person students. Each student marked their years of hard work by walking across the stage, shaking Ron Matthews (gloved) hand and grabbing their diploma (cover).

To start the ceremony, Dr. Steven Ford and Rev. Perry Brisbon led the crowd in a hymn, singing “Great is Thy Faithfulness” powerfully. President Matthews welcomed each crowd by telling the graduates to stand up and for their friends and family to cheer for them. When that was done, he then told them to do it better. There was so much joy and celebration in that pavilion; it felt like it was shaking with cheer.

The verse reading was Jonah 2:1-10, which is when Jonah prays to God, even while in the belly of the fish. For many graduates, stepping into the real world after earning a degree can feel like Jonah in the deep. Verses 8-9 say, “Those who cling to worthless idols turn away from God’s love for them. But I, with shouts of grateful praise, will sacrifice to you. What I have vowed I will make good. I will say, ‘Salvation comes from the LORD.’” These graduates were dedicating their degrees to doing good for God by upholding Eastern’s mission of faith, reason and justice, even as they move on from Eastern. Throughout the three commencement services, the readings were read in English, Spanish and Arabic by graduates, showing Eastern’s diversity and unity.

Every commencement had a student nominated to speak to the congregation. Ashley Spracken, a College of Health and Sciences graduate, said, “Embrace discomfort, step into the unknown with courage and curiosity.” Leah Laut, an undergrad history major, urged the graduates to “carry that spirit of community, the one that we’ve come to know so well at Eastern, with us through every door that we walk through and remember that hope is always strongest to practice together.” All of the graduates reminded us to lean on each other in times of adversity.

Turning Point, Eastern’s auditioned choir, had its graduates and current members sing “You Do Not Walk Alone,” which continued on the theme of community and togetherness. Led by Brisbon, the students performed an angelic song, wishing that the graduates would see “God’s light on the path ahead when the road you walk is dark” in their future as they step into the world of adulthood.

Then President Matthews took to the podium to congratulate the graduating class of 2025, urging them to stand up so that their friends and family could whoop and hollar at the achievement we were all there to celebrate. I can only describe The Mann as being filled with joy for those humans in caps and gowns as thunderous applause roared around them.

Next, the commencement address was delivered by Lord Marvin Rees, who graduated in 2001 from Eastern University’s Economic Development Program. He was the Mayor of Bristol, UK, from 2016 to 2024, and was the first person of Black African heritage to be elected as mayor of a major European city. He has several honorary degrees from the University of Bristol, Swansea University, the University of Pennsylvania and, on May 10, Eastern University joined the ranks of bestowing him with the privilege of an honorary degree.

Rees congratulated the graduates for carrying on the dreams of their families and loved ones. Rees, being an advocate for social justice, advised the graduates on how to live out Eastern’s mission of faith, reason and justice by doing good in the world as “custodians of the values of this university.” Rees urged our graduates to continue into the world with intellectual curiosity and that we “urgently need good people to get adequate answers to those questions.” Rees told our graduates, justice is about a better world, and to get to a better world, you must “be determined to be good people. Do good.”

With that closing, the class of 2025 walked across the stage into a new chapter of adulthood for them, to do good, by the power of faith, reason and justice.

When flowers start to bloom and birds begin to chirp on Eastern’s campus, you can almost hear “Pomp & Circumstance.” Much of Eastern’s population will walk across the graduation stage and go on to bigger and better things at the beginning of May. Sitting down with any of Eastern art’s graduating seniors you can start to fathom the countless hours, blood, sweat and tears that they, and all of our art’s students, have each poured into their respective departments.

Cassandra Kaeppel is a double major in psychology and dance at Eastern. She’s been heavily involved in Eastern’s dance department since fall of her freshman year, when she joined as many dances as she could for that fall’s dance concert. Kaeppel had nothing but praises to sing for the dance department, naming community as the thing that sets Eastern apart from other schools. “Many schools tend to have a toxic environment among both the students and faculty, but at Eastern, I do not get [that] impression. The faculty wants all the students to learn something and keep growing their knowledge and technique. The students at Eastern all support each other,” she shared. Specific faculty, such as Heather Wilson, has offered such knowledge and kindness to Kaeppel. She can clearly see that Wilson “wants to see her students grow and succeed in what they do.” This philosophy is now something that Kaeppel has been able to pass on to her own dance students.

Kaeppel reminisces on the multiple tech weeks she’s been a part of. This is the week of the performance where all elements of the dances are put together in rehearsal, culminating in long nights. Although stressful, Kaeppel loves it, citing it as the reason why they all become so close. Also part of performance week, Kaeppel loves warm ups before shows, “it allows us to connect with one another before we perform. At the end […] we always end with a prayer. I love this because it allows us to refocus on what is important, and it gives us a moment to slow down and breathe.”

Eastern’s dance department has taught her “that not everything that is worthwhile will be easy.” She then clarified that, “When you have the right support and friends, hard things feel easy, the journey is so much more enjoyable, and once you achieve your goal, the result gets celebrated even more,” that life lesson is one that all of us, not just dancers, can employ into everyday life. Looking to the future, Kaeppel plans to teach at dance studios in the area as she continues to dance professionally in Philadelphia with Roger Lee Dance Company.

Amari Dickerson is a theatre major with a minor in psychology. You may have seen him on Eastern’s stage in “Hamlet,” “Big Fish,” “Noises Off,” and most recently, behind the scenes as the stage manager for “A Year With Frog and Toad.” Dickerson has been heavily involved in the theatre department ever since he was a freshman. He’s stuck around because of the community he has found in the department. It has given him the opportunity to branch out “from different things that I know I didn’t even think I could do,” whether that’s with different friendships or skills within the theatre department.

Although Dickerson has fallen in love with the theatre department at Eastern, it has been tricky to accomplish telling stories in the way they deserve because Eastern is Christ-centered. Dickerson is a devout Christian, but he still carefully disagrees with the level of censorship that the Eastern administration puts in place on the theatre department. He believes that to a certain extent, as a Christ-centered university, they need to be careful with what stories they tell, but that it’s been taken too far. “I think Eastern can handle censorship better by allowing us to fully embody the emotions [of the stories we tell]. Eastern is stopping that. It’s like they want us to put on a perfect thing for the perfect people. But, everything’s not perfect.”

When asked what he’s learned from Eastern’s theatre, Dickerson vulnerably shared, “I’ve learned to take no as an answer. It doesn’t have to be that I’m not good enough for this. Maybe it’s just not the thing that’s good for you at this moment.” Although Dickerson is sticking around for another semester, so you can catch him on Eastern’s stage one final time in “Godspell” this fall, he plans to do gigs in the local area. When asked if he had anything else he wanted to share, he said, “Go Birds. And Richie is amazing.”

Richie Izzo is a music composition major, but has been heavily involved in all three art departments at Eastern. He chose Eastern because it was close to home, but wasn’t really sure what else to expect. He was pleasantly surprised by the small size of the department, which he both likes and dislikes. Because of the size of the department, Izzo is “able to be close with the faculty and staff as well as students. You’re not just a number in the music department.” Izzo shouted out both Perry Brisbon and Dr. Steven Ford for encouraging him as he continues to get better at his craft. At his final vocal recital Izzo had the chance to sing a duet with Brisbon of “One Last Time” from the musical “Hamilton” which felt like a great culmination of his three years at Eastern University.

Izzo has been involved in every single production Eastern has put on in some way, even though he is not a theatre major. He loves “taking the show from nothing to putting it on to fruition.” “Big Fish” was the spring musical last year and he cited it as his favorite production he’s ever been a part of. This was not just because of the deeply impactful story he was able to tell about storytelling and the importance of people’s lives, but also because the cast and crew were all good people, who all cared about each other. This made the production feel even more special, bringing the audience to tears along with Izzo in the final moments of the show.

Eastern University’s size has given Izzo opportunities and support that other universities wouldn’t be able to, with producing, directing and writing two musicals, “Fight” and “Inside Out.” This has been an aspiration of his that he has dreamed of since before coming to college, but Eastern’s close-knit and small arts departments came together to help him produce original musicals that he could be proud of. Izzo’s plans for the future are still up in the air currently, “I would like to continue writing music somewhere.” But wherever he lands, he has deep appreciation for Eastern’s arts departments and the community and opportunities it has granted him with. Lastly Izzo declared, “Go Birds. Amari Dickerson is amazing.”

In the depths of the basement of Kea, you may be lucky enough to spot a man with medium-length graying curly hair and a scarf long enough to touch the floor. This man is John Doyle, a communications professor at Eastern University and he is slaving away to bring Eastern its new student-led radio station: Studio 1300, where faith, reason and justice find their voice.

For the past couple of months, Doyle and his leadership team of students have been creating this radio station, almost from the ground up. This has involved collaboration with IT, Eastern’s marketing and communication studies department. He has fought valiantly with computers and sound boards, but finally, in March, Studio 1300 will be available for all of Eastern to hear.

Studio 1300 will have a rotation of student DJs picking the programming for a one to two-hour slot, being able to chat about whatever they want to and put on whatever genre of music they want. The best part about this is anyone could be a student DJ! If you’re a yapper or have a passion for music, you’d be a perfect fit for the Studio 1300 team. Email john.doyle@eastern.edu to begin the process of starting a show.

Doyle hopes that the radio station will be played in common spaces throughout the university. William Cunningham, one of the students involved in Studio 1300 explained that “it gives students the ability to hear each other’s voices and hear about what’s going on.” No longer will you need to scroll through long emails to learn about the weekly happenings at Eastern, and instead all you have to do is tune in to Studio 1300.

But what kinds of programming do we have already lined up?

Show 1

DJ: William Cunningham, senior communication studies major.

Radio show: Inside the Nest, playing on Monday mornings.

Elevator pitch: A show that specifically highlights Eastern sports. “Whether it’s the recaps of games, certain highlights, certain players whose performances standout throughout the week, […] what teams could make the conference tournament.”

Show 2

DJs: Emily Lichius, senior English major, and Colin Tomczak, senior English major.

Radio show: The Spice of Life, playing on Thursday from 10 a.m. to 12 p.m.

Elevator pitch: “There’s a big variety,” in both music tastes between the two and the conversation topics, “and they say variety is the spice of life,” said Tomczak, one half of the spice of life duo.

Show 3

DJ: Hannah Gerber, sophomore communication studies major.

Radio show: The Porchlight Sessions, on Wednesdays at 4 p.m to 6 p.m.

Elevator pitch: I’ll be listening to folk and indie music, getting homework done and probably ranting about the current book I’m reading. If you like Noah Kahn and the season of the sticks you’ll enjoy my show!

Show 4

DJ: Anisah Smith, junior marketing major.

Radio show: Dumpster Fire playing Monday nights from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m.

Elevator pitch: “My brain is like a dumpster,” said Smith, “I’ve got garbage and build up and no friends. So somebody’s got to hear it. And then for my music, I’m not just doing one genre, of course. So that’s it. It’s garbage. Tune in!” If Smith can’t convince you to listen to their station, then I don’t know what will.

Show 5

DJs: Paul McConnell, junior communication studies major, and John Nolek, sophomore.

Radio show: JNPM Sports, playing on Tuesday mornings, 10 a.m. to 12 p.m.

Elevator pitch: “The show is two guys talking [Philly] sports and jamming to some of the greatest Philly walk-up songs.”

This new radio station will launch at the beginnings of our Centennial celebrations, to show how far Eastern has come and how much it has progressed in all of its major specializations. Stay tuned for how you can listen, 24/7, starting on March 13.

Between classes, homework, activities, friends, and your actual paying job being a college student can sometimes feel like you have two full time jobs. When you’re juggling so many things something is bound to drop. And I know for me, and for many college students around me, that is often taking care of themselves. Simple self-care that will make your health and well-being improve often gets thrown out the window when needed. Drinking water? Forget about it. Going to bed at a reasonable time? Hell no.

To-do lists work sometimes! But if that assignment doesn’t bring immediate dopamine or doesn’t immediately have to get done–then it’s not happening. “Finch” helps solve those problems.

“Finch” is a therapist recommended self care app that gives you a birb, (yes they spell it like “birb”, not bird– it adds to the cuteness) to take care of and send on adventures. The way to send the birb on adventures? You have to complete the tasks and self care items the app curates for you.

Once you download the app it will take you through an intense questionnaire and ask you questions to understand how well you currently take care of yourself, and where you want to improve. Once you complete the questionnaire- it formulates a daily to do list for you to start out with. And as you use it more, the app starts to learn what your routines are and adds suggestions.

Some of these tasks repeat every day like “Get out of bed,” or “Brush teeth.” But you can also add your own tasks, both for the day or to repeat everyday as a habit builder. I’ve been known to add “Eat at the DC at least once,” so at least I’m getting some enjoyment out of the DC food.

The best part of “Finch” is that after you complete each task you get rainbow stones–the currency of “Finch.” You can use the rainbow stones to buy outfits and decorations for the birb’s house.

Do you like dinosaurs? Perfect, have a dinosaur themed house! Outdoors and camping? Your room is now a tent! But the only way you can get these cute things is if you– oh no– take care of yourself.

The app tricks your brain into doing the mundane things that you have no interest in doing by giving you dopamine for doing each thing.

With the “Finch” app, I decided I was going to try to set a new habit. Each night by 11:00 or 11:30, I would read a fun book for 30 minutes to an hour before bed. Somehow the magic of Finch has made me accomplish this goal– even after a long day of reading philosophical books for school. This simple habit change has made far more difference than I ever thought it would. I sleep better because I’m not looking at my phone before bed. I have less anxiety because I get to end the day with escaping into a book, living different lives and engaging in fantasy worlds different than my own– and I got rainbow stones for it.

Besides tricking you into doing things to take care of yourself, the app also lets you be friends with your friend’s birbs! You can send your friends encouragements and even remind them to stretch or drink water–you know they need it.

The best part about having your friends on the app is that you can buy them little outfits or things for their home and send it to them. And as a college student who loves to spoil her friends but doesn’t necessarily have the funds to do so, this app fills that need. I see a sweater that a friend and his birb, Gus would love– but I don’t have enough rainbow stones for it? Oh no! I guess I have to take care of myself so that I can spoil my friends!

“Wicked” is the untold story of the Wicked Witch of the West, showing us her past leading up to the events of “The Wizard of Oz,” and her relationship with Glinda the Good before either became known as witches. The main question the movie musical asks is, “Are people born wicked? Or do they have wickedness thrust upon them?” This foreshadows the tone of the whole musical, exploring the events of “The Wizard of Oz” through a lens you might not have thought about. The movie is in two separate parts, mirroring the act one and two of the original musical on the Broadway stage.

I grew up listening to the soundtrack on long road trips with my mom, belting out the lyrics, and conducting the imaginary orchestra in our heads. I saw it on Broadway, so needless to say, “Wicked” has a special place in my heart. So instead of being super excited for the movie, I guarded my heart and was ready for it to be awful, to ruin the story and everything good and challenging about it. Why is it in two parts? What is this, 2010? When I sat down in the theater, I was immediately enraptured, and at the opening chord, tears started streaming down my face. I proceeded to cry nine separate times after that. So here is my (relatively) spoiler-free review of the biggest blockbuster of the season.

Jon M. Chu’s vision and dedication to making the world of Oz whimsical and otherworldly were apparent. You could see it with the costumes, choreography, and set. Everything was campy in the best way possible. The choreography was precise, big and looked a little bit not human, which is perfect for a fantasy world like Oz, that’s not human! Seeing those sets on the big screen made me feel fully immersed. The original movie, “The Wizard of Oz,” goes down in film history as being the first of its kind to use big sets like that, so it only makes sense for “Wicked” to rival it with its physical sets, using CGI as little as possible, even going so far as to plant 9 million tulips. All of the physical sets were specifically made for it to feel like a magical world, whether it made sense or not. Should the library be a weird circle that spins? No. But did it look cool? Absolutely.

The ensemble cast brought it and all had angelic voices, and I’m excited to see them shine in part two. The real star of the ensemble cast was Jonathon Bailey as Winkie Prince, Fiyero. Bailey played sweet, stupid and flirtatious incredibly well in a completely different way than Ariana Grande’s Glinda. He perfectly played the carefree quickness, showing us that not being smart doesn’t mean they can’t be clever. He flirted with anyone and everyone no matter the gender, having perfect chemistry with both Grande and Erivo. He portrayed the beginning of his character arc beautifully, and I can’t wait to see the rest in part two.

Cynthia Erivo and Grande absolutely blew me away. I was nervous about casting a pop star with little acting experience in such a huge film, but she made me eat my words. I have never been happier to be wrong. Her comedic timing was impeccable. She perfectly kept the barrier between a lovable bimbo and a person with privilege who doesn’t get all the complexities of the good and bad of the world but is willing to grow a little. The true star was obviously Erivo. Her eyes showed every little emotion Elphaba was feeling. She was quirky, sassy, fiery, and passionate—everything a good Elphaba needs. I cried several times as she fought for the good of Oz and learned that the power of Oz is not quite what she was led to believe. You could tell the two actors were friends in real life, which made their friendship all the sweeter–and their fighting all the funnier.

As a lover of the original musical, I was hesitant about it being broken up into two parts, especially since the first part is longer than the full-length Broadway musical. Walking away, I understand why they needed the extra time to give background and context that stage musicals can’t afford, but movies need. They gave more lore from the original book that I didn’t know and made the plot make more sense. Do I think it needed to be two hours and 40 minutes? No. I felt that 20 minutes from different parts of the middle could’ve been cut (that I won’t divulge here for fear of spoilers). I was sad that I wasn’t able to see the conclusion, and that a lot of people will most likely Google spoilers, which I urge you not to–experience the story’s magic by watching it.

I saw criticism about Hollywood making “Wicked” woke, and I promise you the storyline about animals and Elphaba being lesser than others because of the way they look has been intrinsic to the plot ever since the book came out in 1995 and is unfortunately still relevant today. When you go watch it, I urge you to think critically about the characters and the question Glinda asks at the beginning of the film, “Are people born wicked? Or do they have wickedness thrust upon them?” Think about what truly makes a person wicked, and challenge yourself to think about which characters are the wicked ones.

What do Jenifer Lawrence, Billie Eilish and George Clooney all have in common? They all endorsed current Vice President Kamala Harris, for president in this year’s election season. Though multiple celebrities have taken to various social media platforms and rallies to endorse their preferred candidate this year, this is seemingly unheard of in the past. It used to be taboo to tell others who you were voting for, let alone blasting it on the internet for all to hear in a persuasive attempt. The most notable celebrity who took to Instagram to announce their support for the Democratic candidate is Taylor Swift. Swift, whose current international tour, the Eras Tour, has grossed about $1.04 billion from 60 shows in 2023 alone (Forbes).

Immediately after Vice President Kamala Harris and former president Donald Trump debated on live television Swift took to her Instagram to squash the rumors once and for all on who she was voting for. These rumors and misconceptions stemmed from the former president himself posting AI-generated photos of Taylor Swift dressed as Uncle Sam, saying “Taylor wants you to vote for Donald Trump,” he captioned these posts with, “I accept!” (The Guardian). Swift acknowledged the AI fake images in her endorsement post saying, “It really conjured up my fears around AI, and the dangers of spreading misinformation”. Next, Swift proceeded to the conclusion that she had to be transparent about who her vote would be cast for in the upcoming presidential election.

This comes after popular Instagram activist, Matt Bernstein called out Taylor Swift for hanging with celebrity, Brittany Mahomes, who publicly endorsed Trump for president, in a post with over 500,000 likes. Why would Bernstein specifically call out Swift when there are a multitude of celebrities who haven’t endorsed Harris for president? Bernstein was holding Swift accountable because, in 2018, Swift broke her silence in politics to endorse a politician in her local Tennessee district. In Swift’s documentary that aired in 2020, “Miss Americana,” fans saw the behind-the-scenes of her decision. In the documentary we see Swift begin to break into tears, trying to advocate for the importance of her making a statement. Her media team, including her father, were not very excited about it, comparing her to Bob Hope and Bing Cosby, saying that they never got involved in politics. Swift responded with, “These aren’t your dad’s celebrities, and these aren’t your dad’s Republicans.” Swift continued to say that she regretted not speaking up against Trump in the 2016 elections, “I’m saying right now, that this is something that I know is right, and, you guys, I need to be on the right side of history.” Swift continued to argue for her decision to her team, in regards to criticizing Marsha Blackburn, “It’s really basic human rights, and it’s right and wrong at this point, and I can’t see another commercial… and see her disguising these policies behind the words ‘Tennessee Christian Values’, those aren’t Tennessee Christian values. I live in Tennessee. I am a Christian. That’s not what we stand for. I need to do this. I need you to just… Dad, I just need you to forgive me for doing it ‘cause I’m doing it.”

Fans were moved and registered to vote as soon as she broke her silence the first time, so people wondered why she hadn’t broken her silence in regards to the current election cycle when they had watched her moved to tears with how strongly she felt in regards to making the public know who she was voting for and why. Some theorized that Swift’s current boyfriend, Travis Kelce was the reason for her change of heart.

In any case, Swift’s Instagram post with over 11,0000,000 likes said that she would be casting her vote for Kamala Harris and Tim Walz. She goes on to explain why she believes they will be good leaders for the country, claiming that they would lead “by calm and not chaos.” The final paragraph in her post, in a masterful move by Swift, urges her fellow voters to do their own research, and not just listen to her or the ads they see on television. Swift then reshared the post on her story with a link for where to register to vote. In response, over 330,000 people visited Vote.gov sites overnight (The Hollywood Reporter).

The Harris Walz Campaign immediately latched onto Swift’s endorsements, just like they did with Charli XCX’s “brat” album. They issued a release that included over 28 references to Swift’s songs (USA Today). Additionally, 20 minutes after her endorsement the campaign started selling Harris-Walz-themed friendship bracelets, referencing the current trend at her Eras Tour (NPR). Donald Trump’s response was posted on his social media platform, “I HATE TAYLOR SWIFT.”

In the end, we will never know if Swift’s and other celebrities’ endorsements for any candidate do anything for the election in today’s climate. Yet, there has been a sudden uptick in celebrities endorsing political candidates, instead of keeping it as taboo, as it used to be. Even after Swift’s first endorsement of the Tennessee democratic candidates failed, she still continues to endorse politicians. And yet, fans were getting mad at her for her perceived silence on the subject matter, even when there is no way to know if an endorsement makes any difference. At the end of this article, I, like Swift, will attempt to urge you to do your own research on the candidates, don’t only listen to your friends. Please, take the time to register to vote, you have only two more days left to register in Pa. Out of towners to make things easier for you, you can claim Eastern University as your address! The future is in our hands, and you can make a difference, your vote does count.

You may recognize the names Richie Izzo and Amari Dickerson from their starring roles in Eastern’s past theater productions like ‘Hamlet’ and ‘Big Fish’. Like many college students, they found themselves bored during summer break, looking for a way to spend their time besides working and summer courses. They both turned to a creative outlet, writing their own show. The best part? And no, it’s not that they’re best friends (which they are). The best part is that you can go see it for free at Eastern, on September 28 and 29, supporting a completely student-led production. ‘Twofold’ is a production where both Richie and Amari will showcase their shows, Amari’s play in the first act and Richie’s musical in the second act. And as an added bonus: they star in each other’s show– because they’re just BFFs like that.

Amari Dickerson’s play, ‘Life in Death’, is an exploration “of a youth who is constantly grieving and disoriented by death, until death gives his life meaning (Eastern University).” What is life without suffering to make it meaningful? The show follows Jamie, a high schooler whose parents passed away, struggling to find joy until he meets a friend, Riley, who convinces him to see the world differently. Packed with comedy and a unique perspective on the world, Dickerson shows us the contrasts of life and death. In an interview with the writer, Amari, he told us that he hit a roadblock in writing the show over the summer until his grandfather passed away. His grandfather’s death inspired him to follow through in writing and producing this show to show students that there is always light in the darkness.

Richie’s musical, ‘The Inside Out’, is about “the daily difficulties with mental health and depression (Eastern University).” In addition, it confronts the stigmas that surround mental health that young adults face. In talking to Richie Izzo, he made an emphasis on the realness of the characters that this musical follows. There are three characters who the audience only sees in one setting, “It’s literally about the people in it. I don’t want to say it’s mundane, but it’s like very mundane (Richie Izzo).” It’s about the beautiful and chaotic parts of mundane and real life. Any person who has ever questioned what their purpose is or what they are doing with their life will feel seen in this show.

Although these two are well-versed in the world of theater, putting on a production has been harder than both expected. Richie shared that when you’re an actor in the show, you don’t realize how many small details go into putting on a show. So in producing and directing a show there are so many small things that both men didn’t expect would need their decision making. Even just the simple act of actually writing the pieces was difficult. Somehow the writers need to whittle down all of their ideas to all of the necessary plot details to tell a story. Yet, paradoxically, Richie Izzo told us that the best part of the process was the actual writing of the show. When the plot falls into place perfectly, it’s satisfying, and feels like he’s writing something that matters. Amari Dickerson told us that the best thing about this process is the other students who have come along to support them in this process. I had the privilege of sitting in on a rehearsal of ‘Life in Death’ and I got to witness the cast react to their friend’s creation in real-time. They laughed together, cried together, and paused their acting to tell Amari, “this is beautiful”. Art is a beautiful thing that can join people together and make people feel and understand complex emotions and events more tangibly. Richie and Amari are giving us all this unique opportunity to see into a student’s creative mind and listen to the story that they find is worthy for us to see. I encourage you to take that study break and come to the show because you will walk out with a new perspective on life and death.