Knox Coffee House

On December 1, The Knox School Department of Visual and Performing Arts presented an intimate Coffee House evening of songs, poetry, and dramatic monologues in the Performing Arts Studio. Students in the Stagecraft class transformed the studio with fabric, a checkerboard stage, and various colored lights to create a warm, inviting theatrical venue.

The diverse song styles included Chinese pop, French techno, and acoustic folk, as well as a song by the legendary Sam Cooke and a duet from the Broadway musical hit “Hamilton.” Dramatic monologues represented a range of theatrical plays including “The Cherry Orchard,” “The Beggar’s Opera,” and “A Woman of No Importance.”

In recognition of World AIDS Day, Department Chair Patrick Barry concluded the program with some words about the history and impact of the disease. All performers wore red ribbons in support of AIDS awareness. The set featured seven candles, each representing 10 million people who have been diagnosed with HIV/AIDS since the epidemic began in the mid-1980s. After a moment of silence, the school Choir performed “Seasons of Love,” from the Broadway musical RENT.

Knox Choir performs “Seasons of Love.”

All images were provided by Student Staff Photographer, Cambon Wang. To view more of Cambon’s work, click here.

Student performers included: David Wang, Johnson Cai, Kyo Lu, Helen Young, Connor Free, Henry Thomas, Kyle Persaud, Gia Zhao, Madison Licalzi, Annie Kong, Victoria Bove, Abby Bruning, Elizaveta Vostokova, Nik Cazacu, Daniel Leach, Wassef Methnani, Michael Curth, Nicholas Lazo, Mateja Markovic, and Performing Arts Representative and co-host Rachel Jia.

Annie Kong recites the poem “Always Something More Beautiful.”

Abby Bruning and Elizaveta Vostokova perform “Dear Theodosia” from “Hamilton.”