The Huntington Education Department Brings Theatre and Poetry To Students Across Greater Boston and The Commonwealth

The Huntington Education Department has announced a busy spring season, with three programs returning full force since Covid-19 this March and April 2023. The Massachusetts chapter of the national recitation contest run locally by The Huntington with the Mass Cultural Council and nationwide by The Poetry Foundation and National Endowment of the Arts, Poetry Out Loud, returned in-person across Massachusetts for the first time since 2020, culminating with the state finals taking place at the Old South Meeting House on Sunday, March 12.

The August Wilson New Voices Competition - for which The Huntington is a regional partner - returned with a new format and in-person for the first time since 2020, with regional finals taking place at the Calderwood Pavilion at the BCA on Monday, March 20. And in early April, the Next Narrative Monologue Competition regional finals returned once again in person to the Calderwood Pavilion at the BCA on Monday, April 3. Finalists from all three regional competitions will go on to compete nationally in May.

Theatre education builds prosocial behavior in students, encourages empathy, improves public speaking, and develops both creative and critical thinking. These skills are particularly important for students who recently spent a significant amount of schooling time in total or partial isolation due to Covid-19. The Huntington Education Department is proud and excited to continue its efforts to bring theatre and poetry - and the skills and inspiration those arts foster - into young people's lives.

"I am so proud of the students, teachers, and my staff who made an almost-instant pivot to virtual learning in the 20/21 and 21/22 school years. There was profound collaboration and great success in those two years," says Huntington Director of Education Meg O'Brien. "I am also deeply moved and relieved by the opportunity to safely return to in person learning, engagement, and performances. The students in each of these programs represent hundreds of thousands of students who thrive in creative spaces, and they will shine in their upcoming moments in the spotlight. We have all not-so-patiently anticipated this very moment from the start of the shutdown three years ago, and I am delighted and grateful to have arrived here."

"It's great to be back in person!" says Huntington Artistic Director Loretta Greco about Poetry Out Loud. "It's really moving to see so many students that are thriving that they had to name five finalists instead of the usual three. And all the kids were just so possessed, passionate, and inside the language. It's a tribute to Meg [O'Brien] and this program how prolifically we were represented. It gave me lots of pride and excitement for the future."

One of the most extensive and admired programs in the country, The Huntington Education Department serves more than 30,000 students, teachers, and community organizations each year with student matinees, Poetry Out Loud Massachusetts, the August Wilson New Voices Competition, True Colors' Next Narrative Monologue Competition, and other programs. Collaborators in this work include Boston Public Schools, Codman Academy Charter Public School, The Goodman Theatre, National Endowment for the Arts, Mass Cultural Council, and many community organizations. The Boston Chapter of the August Wilson New Voices Competition includes school residencies in 10 Boston Public Schools, Codman Academy Charter Public School, and Cambridge Rindge & Latin School.

Poetry Out Loud Massachusetts has been ranked in the top 5 states for participation statistics nationally for 13 of the 18 years POL has existed. And this year, the 2023 POL Massachusetts State Finals scores were so close that five top finalists were named instead of the planned top three.

Jaden Riley, a Senior at John D. O'Bryant School of Mathematics, was named the 2023 Poetry Out Loud Massachusetts State Champion and will go on to compete in the Nationals in DC May 8-11. In second place was Tuala Sullivan (Senior at Newburyport High School in Newburyport) and in third place Ellis Iurilli-Hough (Senior at Melrose High School in Melrose). Rounding out the top five finalists are Klea Pocoli (Senior at Methuen High School in Methuen) and Maria Zaki (Junior at Franklin High School in Franklin).

Beza Mekonnen, a Junior at Cambridge Rindge & Latin School, was named the 2023 August Wilson New Voices Monologue Competition Boston Regional Champion. In second place was Seine Young (Senior at Boston Arts Academy). Both students won prize money as well as an all-expenses-paid trip to Chicago, IL for the Nationals (April 29 - May 2).

Sakura Rosenthal, a Junior at Boston Arts Academy, was named the 2023 Next Narrative Boston Regional Champion. In second and third place were Seine Young (Senior at Boston Arts Academy) and Armani Barrantes (Junior at Boston Arts Academy) respectively. Rosenthal and Young will go on to compete in the Nationals in New York (May 6-9).