West Philly experiences with race inspire ABCS course
West Philly experiences with race inspire ABCS course
Sophia Witte
The Daily Pennsylvanian
How do you translate a person’s life — filled with discrimination and racial tension — into a play or a work of spoken art? A relatively new Penn course gives students the opportunity to answer that question.
“Writing Out Loud” — an Academically Based Community Service or ABCS course — is prompting Penn students to write original theater pieces based on relationships they form with West Philadelphia residents. In the classroom and during community discussions, Penn students and West Philadelphia residents reflect together on the plays of August Wilson, a playwright whose work captures experiences of 20th century African Americans.
Spearheaded by Penn alumni Suzana Berger and Penn professor Herman Beavers, the course uses Wilson’s plays as context to give Penn students a better understanding of West Philadelphia. To attract interested community members to the program, Berger forged a partnership with the West Philadelphia Cultural Alliance or WPCA — a local organization that promotes arts and culture.