Shine a Light

On December 11th I attended the presentation of Shine a Light, a performance of a group of students of Bunker Hill Community College. I had the opportunity to enjoy different forms of art which included rap, acoustic music, dance, theater and poetry. The students used them to talk about many different social issues such as AIDS, sexual harassment, poverty, human rights, and women’s rights. It was a very interesting presentation, first of all, because of the artistic forms used; second, because the messages the group was trying to communicate are issues that affect every one of us, directly or indirectly.

I think that if you combine music and messages with social content, the messages are more easily going to be absorbed by the people who are listening to you songs. And if you have something to say and write a poem about it, the mere fact of using poetry to express what you want the others to know, is going to make your words and your intention more permanent in the memory of the ones who listen to it.

This was not precisely a religious presentation; nevertheless, there was an enormous charge of spirituality in the way the performers presented their pieces. I think it had a lot to do with the intensity the performers showed when they were trying to send their ideas to the public. It was also because they are all young and idealism almost always belongs to the young people. Also, it was evident that the students invested a lot of time and effort to prepare for their presentation. They did a great job, there were no problems or distractions and they were able to deliver their message with ease.

I think this kind of performance is a great way to make ideas travel around and gives the opportunity to tell others about the issues that have to be addressed. One can enjoy the music, the dance and the acting and then reflect about why these people in the performance are putting so much effort to make us think. They may be talking about something everybody knows but they do it in a more impressive way. Images, expressions, gestures and different ways to use the voice are so much easier to remember. Their message can more easily go through.

I am glad I decided to be there last Friday. It was a great experience.