West Virginia State University Creators Program Announces Spring Schedule

2/13/2020

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Contact: Jack Bailey
(304) 766-4109
jbaile19@wvstateu.edu
     
INSTITUTE, West Virginia – The spring season of the West Virginia State University Economic Development Center’s (WVSU EDC) Creators Program includes a series of talks targeting authors, sports fans, musicians and visual storytellers. The free sessions will take place throughout the coming months at the WVSU EDC in Charleston, beginning Feb. 19.

“The spring line-up of Creators Program sessions at the WVSU EDC is a celebration of the arts in West Virginia,” said WVSU EDC Artist in Residence Danny Boyd, a retired WVSU professor, author, filmmaker and playwright. “This season, we welcome a variety of regional authors, filmmakers, playwrights and musicians who will showcase their work and talent.” 

The full schedule of spring sessions includes the following.

• Growing Up Black in Appalachia with Professional Storyteller W.I. “Bill” Hairston | Feb. 19 | 6:30 p.m. to 8 p.m. - Hairston, a member of the West Virginia Storytelling Guild, will share stories and experiences on what it was like growing up black in his beloved West Virginia. 
• An Evening with the Huntington Sirens | March 19 | 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. - A panel discussion on publishing with Huntington-based authors Sheila Redling, Marie Manilla and Carter Taylor Seaton.
• Batter Up: Baseball in Charleston | April 8 | 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. - A West Virginia Public Radio documentary listening party with creator Eric Douglas and guests from the PBS program.
• Space Preachers: The Musical | April 10 | 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. - A studio recording of “Space Preachers: The Musical,” with creators Mark Scarpelli and Boyd.
• Words and Music with Marc Harshman and Doug Van Gundy | May 6 | 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. - Readings and music with West Virginia Poet Laureate Harshman and author Van Gundy.
• Screen to Stage: Adapting the Film “Paradise Park” to a Staged Musical | June 10 | 7 p.m. - 9 p.m. - Boyd and “Mountain Stage” host Larry Groce will share the story of adapting Boyd’s film “Paradise Park” into a musical.

The Creators Program launched in 2012 as a series of community workshops focusing on skills and knowledge essential to creating for mass media and art. Workshops and talks are designed for people of all skill levels, including students and others interested in expanding their creative endeavors. 

Each Creators Program session is free to attend. Space is limited, and registration is required. To register, visit wvsuedc.org or call (304) 720-1401.

The WVSU EDC is located at 1506 Kanawha Blvd. W. in Charleston.

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West Virginia State University is a public, land grant, historically black university, which has evolved into a fully accessible, racially integrated, and multi‐generational institution, located in Institute, W.Va. As a “living laboratory of human relations,” the university is a community of students, staff, and faculty committed to academic growth, service and preservation of the racial and cultural diversity of the institution. Its mission is to meet the higher education and economic development needs of the state and region through innovative teaching and applied research.