Creativity took center stage in Grise Hall Thursday as WKU students and faculty shared their work at the semester’s first open mic night.
The event hosted 15 performers who shared a wide range of genres, including poetry, fiction and screenwriting. The event was organized by Heather Neidlinger, a third-year Master’s of Fine Arts candidate for poetry. Neidlinger said the open mic nights have a long-standing history in the English Department, usually run by an MFA candidate.
“It’s been going on for quite some time,” Neidlinger said, “I’ve been a reader at it for pretty much the whole time I’ve been up here.”
This is Neidlinger’s third semester hosting the open mic nights. She said that in her time in the department, she has seen the number of performers and attendees continuously grow. Open mic nights have also significantly affected Neidlinger’s trajectory in her undergraduate years.
“I actually wasn’t going to go for my MFA initially,” she said, “And I went to a couple open mics, and I read at them, and I liked it so much that I took a creative writing class… and then I was encouraged to go for the MFA program.”
The performance slots are open to all WKU students and faculty. Of the 15 performers, two were professors, and two were MFA candidates, including Neidlinger.
Neidlinger hoped that attendees could find a sense of community from the performances and connect with what the writers were sharing. Audience members took note of the artistry shared, and some felt inspired to do the same.
“Definitely hearing all these poems, I want to express my thoughts out loud,” said senior hospitality management major Merv Mustapha.
Other attendees expressed their own interests in writing after hearing the other performances.
“It’s inspired me for a journaling prompt tonight,” said Elaine Pham, a senior architectural science major. “So I feel a little more introspective now.”
Many of the speakers expressed that they chose to participate in the event to help themselves grow as artists.
Junior film major Noah Payton performed a reading of a screenplay with two other performers and reflected on how experiences like this can help his artistry. Payton said he values audience feedback as an important aspect of sharing his work, emphasizing the need for audience enjoyment.
“I can come up with stories all day and come up with things, but then again, you’re making it for an audience,” Payton said.
Other performers expressed a desire for feedback and audience perspectives.
“It really builds confidence, and it helps you understand your work from different perspectives,” freshman English literature major Abigail Goehner said. “Like you’re suddenly forced to think about everyone in the room.”
Goehner shared a poem about growing up in the South and how others around her view the region. She said the feeling of sharing written work in this environment is thrilling.
“I think it’s exhilarating,” Goehner said. “There was a lot of energy… I was a lot less scared than I usually am.”
Neidlinger explains that achieving these feelings of growth and comfort is what this event is all about.
“It’s also just good to get your thoughts out and to know that it has a safe space to land,” Neidlinger explained, “So I try to make sure that this feels like a safe spot for them, and I think that resonates with them.”
There will be two more open mic nights this semester on March 26 and April 23. For any questions or interest in participating, contact Heather Neidlinger at [email protected].
