BY EMMA MARTIN ’20
Missed the Involvement Fair this Sunday? Looking to get in touch with your creative side this semester? Here’s what a few of the Mount Holyoke arts organizations are up to on campus!
Mount Holyoke Broadcasting Channel
“Our plan is to essentially help people learn how to make movies,” said Mount Holyoke Broadcasting Channel Chair Bobbie Green ’19. The org, founded last fall, familiarizes members and collaborators with the stages of production, including script writing and operating film equipment and software. Green hopes that “other orgs will want quality, professional video making and get involved with us.” Green emphasized that no prior experience is necessary. “We really want to be there to walk people through the process and make more and more people interested in what we’re making on campus,” said Green. You can reach the MHBC via email at mhbroadcastingchannel@gmail.com.
Jazz Ensembles of Mount Holyoke College
The Mount Holyoke Jazz Ensembles or MHC Jazz is a joint effort of the Big Band and the Vocal and Chamber Jazz Ensembles. Club secretary Chris Cassidy ’20 explained that the club is “very active on campus and do[es] a lot of things [...] within the music department,” including performances like the annual Big Broadcast and annual Vespers shows in New York City and Boston. “I come from a classical singing background [...] but I was always curious if [jazz] would be a good fit for me [... I] was able to learn a lot about my own voice as well as bits and pieces of music theory,” said Cassidy. For her, music is not the only benefit of belonging to the club. “I think the community we have in our org is something very special,” she added. The ensembles are in need of instrumentalists as well as vocalists. You can reach Cassidy by email at cassi22c@mtholyoke.edu.
Student Art Board
The Mount Holyoke Student Art Board runs the Blanchard student art gallery. Students, professors and folks in the Five College area can submit proposals for a gallery show which the board will then review and help plan in collaboration with the artist. “[Members of the Student Art Board] get this sort of connection to the art community on campus, get a connection to the art department itself [...] and get experience working in a gallery,” said co-chair Levi Booker ’20. The organization offers opportunities for involvement for members and non-members alike, regardless of major. “We really want to foster the art community on campus, so we hold the weekly live model drawing sessions as a way [of] having a very chill space where anybody — people not even in the org — can come,” said Booker. Email mhcartboard@gmail.com for more information.
Conscious Poets Society
“The club is open to anyone who is interested in writing, performing or just wants to be in an environment that is dedicated to poetry,” said Verity O’Connell ’20, Five College Coordinator for the club. At weekly meetings, members are given a prompt created by the board and from there, creativity ensues. Members are encouraged (but never forced) to share. “We also do some workshops for people to bring in what they have been working on,” said O’Connell. Who does Conscious Poets Society attract? According to O’Connell, “anyone who loves writing or being part of a community that cares about poetry — whatever that means to them.” Contact consciouspoetsmhc@gmail.com for more information.