In the basement of the Student Union late Tuesday night, poet hopefuls stood one-by-one in front of a panel of judges, each gunning for a spot in the selective Ebony Readers/ Onyx Theater group.
A total of 35 students auditioned for the group over two days of auditions. Only a fraction of the students will be accepted to join EROT, the subdivision of the Black Student Movement responsible for poetry, spoken word and theatrical dramas.
Their group is intimate, currently totaling 14 members, and meets once
a week to share written work and practice for performances.
Those who auditioned read a poem of their choice aloud. Some chose to showcase their own work. The poets then performed a reading
of an unfamiliar poem in order for panelists to assess their
improv abilities. Judges prodded the hopefuls with questions, asking
about prior performance experience and their backgrounds in poetry.
Finally, those auditioning acted out an improvised dramatic scene with
a partner.
Some were nervous, while others came ready to perform with conviction
and force. After sophomore Fenmilayo Solar read her own piece, then
talked to the judges about her love for spoken word performances.
“How powerful these words are…,” she said. “It just resonates with me.
They’re not just words.”
Junior Andrew Waszkowski leaned against the Cabaret doors, poems in
hand, awaiting his turn to be called inside. His thoughts were
synonymous with those of the others auditioning.
“This is different than submitting something to a magazine,” he said.
“It’s a performance. It’s interactive so you get the electricity of
performance and the power of words combined.”
Some of the poets were drawn to EROT’s feeling of community, something
to which all of EROT’s members attest. Senior Jamila Reddy, in her
second year as EROT’s president, sat in the center of the judging
panel and spoke about her best experiences working with the EROT
family.
“It’s really powerful to be able to be around a group of people who
are willing to support you both as a person and as an artist,” she
said. “In texts, emails, whatever, we call each other ‘fam.’ Here, you
always have a support group. You always have someone on your team.”
Though EROT’s members say they are often working, they aren’t running
out of ideas just yet.
Reddy said EROT has a bright future here on campus, as long as its
members continue inspiring each other.
“It’s a continuous give and take inspiration cycle.”
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