Students, faculty, trustees, and community members gathered in the Robert J. Orchard Theater in the Paramount Center on Wednesday, March 20, as the Southwick Recital took to the stage to kick off President Jay M. Bernhardt’s inauguration festivities. 

The Southwick Recital has been an Emerson tradition since 1900 and has focused on celebrating the written and spoken word by staging readings of various works of prose, poetry, and monologues.  

The recital, produced by the School of Communication and the Department of Communication Studies, featured many prized works of Edgar Allen Poe. 

This recital mimicked that from Fall 2023, with more than two dozen cast members performing again on stage to a larger audience.

Twenty-nine faculty and students graced the stage in a variety of performances. Sunny Ranqiu Xia appeared as “Poe 1,” Tyler Ferro as “Poe 2” and “Philadelphia” in a comedic puppet show scene. Lian’a-Raye Soopal and Colette Lauture appeared as “Coopers 1 and 2,” and Leo Wilson as “Ezekiel Williams” and “The Tell-Tale Heart” reader. Ken Grout read voice-overs throughout the recital, Stella Del Tergo appeared as “Poe 3,” and Sophia Jreij and Leo Lukaszevicz appeared as “Longfellow Groupies 1 and 2.” 

Lian’a-Raye Soopal and Colette Lauture appeared alongside Nicole Townsend to sing “Mama, Why Did You Leave Me?” Daniella Lopez-White appeared as “Poe 4,” and Luke Joyce as “Poe 4” the “To Helen” reader, and the “New York” puppet. Jack Vento appeared as “Robert Stanard” and “Sherlock Holmes,” Theo Camara as “Sarah Elmira Royster” and the “Baltimore” puppet, Xinyu Jiang as “Poe 5,” and Tim Douglas as “Alexander B. Shelton” and “The Raven” reader.

Ethan de Bruyn appeared as “Royster” and the “Richmond” puppet, Allie Fernandez as the “Song” reader, Myles Keogh as “The Cask of A

montillado” reader, and Jamie Elder as the “Boston” puppet and “Virginia ‘Sissy’ Poe.” 

Lily Monday, Elisa Darrigo, Freddie Thornley IV, and Carly Gallivan appeared as tap dancers during the “Boston, Massachusetts” performance alongside Nicole Townsend. Connor Spring appeared as “Nancy Drew,” Kloe Yael Dumas as “Hercule Poirot,” Jessamine Manchester as the “Sign Carrier,” Xander Toti as “Poe 6,” and A.T. McGillen as the “Annabel Lee” reader. 

Communication Studies Professor Ken Grout served as the director of the recital, alongside Assistant Director Myles Keogh, a junior visual media arts major, and Stage Manager Caroline Larangeira, a junior political communication major.

“The Disciples of Poe” were the recital’s musicians, with Professor Owen Eagan on the electric bass, Professor Doug Quintal on the guitar, and Berklee students Nnamdi Onyeike and Tobias Israel on the keyboard and percussion, respectively.

Bernhardt addressed the audience and noted how the Southwick Recital embodies the principles of Emerson College as a whole. 

“This recital showcased the very principles on which Charles Wesley Emerson founded our college 144 years ago, what he referred to as ‘faith in the infinite possibilities of the human soul,’” Bernhardt said. “We have the privilege of hearing the interpreted works of Edgar Allen Poe, a famous Bostonian who is memorialized just a few blocks from Emerson’s campus.” 

Dr. Gregory Payne, chair of the Communication Studies Department, followed Bernhardt with brief remarks on the great tradition surrounding the Southwick Recital. 

“[President Bernhardt] is right. I was not here when Southwick began but joined a couple of years later,” Payne joked. “We have treasured the Southwick in terms of the tradition of bringing students and faculty from across the college together to celebrate oral interpretation.” 

Grout thanked attendees for their support and noted that the Southwick Recital is a group effort. 

“There are two dozen students involved with [the recital] who represent eight majors from across the college,” Grout said. “This does not happen as a result of any one person alone.”