SeeNoSun OnStage Partners with Nationwide Literacy Groups

SeeNoSun OnStage, a Washington, DC-based professional theater company announced the launch of a project to help improve adult literacy across the U.S. The SeeNoSun Literacy Project will issue free eBooks packaged with theatrically enhanced audio books from the classic horror genre to literacy groups across the country.

The latest release in the SeeNoSun Classic Horror Series, The Beast in the Cave by H.P. Lovecraft, is the project's featured title for the month of October. This month downloads of Lovecraft's classic tale are offered through the company's web site for free with the coupon code freebeast. The audio book was produced and donated by Ghastly Tales, an online horror brand that produces and distributes content on its YouTube channel.

SeeNoSun OnStage Artistic Director Michael P. Wright has been working for more than two years to develop and implement the exciting initiative.

"If we can help people read, write, use a computer and complete basic Internet transactions then they are empowered to lift themselves out of poverty, find and keep sustainable employment and transform their lives," said Wright.

"People love horror stories. SeeNoSun OnStage performs works in the horror and suspense genre because we love the way those stories captivate an audience and inspire active imaginations," Wright added. "Helping motivate literacy students to read more simply because they enjoy it is one of our goals with this project."

Recent statistics about adult literacy in the U.S. show the depth of the problem the SeeNoSun Literacy Project is working to solve.

• The number of U.S. adults who can't read is 32 million. That's 14% of the population. Source: US Department of Education & National Institute of Literacy
• 84% of students reported audiobooks helped comprehension, reading pace, and pronunciation, word knowledge and reader motivation. Source: San Diego State University, School of Education, 2010

The theater company is developing partnerships with numerous literacy groups across the country and to date their response has been enthusiastic.

"I think this initiative will be quite useful for reluctant readers," said Laurie Pashley of the Owen County Public Library in Spencer, Indiana.