The first English Club Open Mic of the semester was held virtually on Friday.
Considering it was not only the first virtual open mic but also the first since the COVID-19 pandemic began back in March, it went extremely well.
It lasted just over an hour and featured many new participants that had never performed in open mics before.
The open mic was showcased by Giovanni Martinez, who read from a series of stories that described the trials of love and pain.
Another powerful performance was delivered by Vickie Wippel, who shared an emotional creative nonfiction piece called “Ghost Story,” that described her connection to her mother and the city of Long Beach itself.
Among the many performers, it was a diverse and varied oeuvre from the poems speaking to lost love, to epics of short fiction.
Each of them brought their own unique perspective to the event creating a rich tapestry of storytelling and exploration.
Beforehand, English Club adviser, Jason Casem, stated that, “It is important to maintain fellowship between the community of writers and those outside of school.”
English Club President Matthew Jacobs spoke about the aftermath of the open mic, “It went great, turnout was better than I expected… we still got a pretty good handful of participants.”
He also performed two poems of his own that followed the waning nostalgia for the 1990s and the film “Weekend at Bernie’s.”
The next Open Mic is expected to have an early December date.
For more information about the English Department and their upcoming events, they can reached at their website: creativewritinglbcc.org