Get the latest Syracuse news delivered right to your inbox.
Subscribe to our newsletter here.

After being asked to draw his future during a creative workshop at Syracuse Stage, Bashir was stuck. He said when he thinks of the future, he sees a blank slate. Joann Yarrow, the director of community engagement and education for Syracuse Stage, replied by telling him to produce a blank slate as his piece of art.

“The way I thought about it is, we don’t know the future,” said Bashir, a high school senior. “The Constitution is not all in black and white and in the future laws can be changed. The future generation can change the Constitution.”

The workshop, which included high school students from La Casita Cultural Center and North Side Learning Center, was meant to inspire further engagement with Syracuse Stage’s latest play, “What the Constitution Means to Me.” Wednesday was the play’s first preview night and the culmination of the workshop as student artwork was displayed before the show.

“One of the really cool things is how we use art to better understand very dry subjects,” Yarrow said. “We use theater in order to bring things to life.”

Melissa Crespo, associate artistic director for Syracuse Stage, said the workshop began with a speech from Judge Thérèse Wiley Dancks, a United States magistrate judge for the Northern District of New York.

The students and the judge discussed environmental concerns, healthcare and other rights and privileges, Yarrow said. After the judge’s talk, La Casita’s Bennie Guzman led the group in creating artwork based on their discussions.

Yarrow said the workshop focused on taking the Constitution, a “dry and informative” text, and asking students what it was missing. Their interest and enthusiastic participation made the event a success.

For the art portion of the event, the students were instructed to choose between themes of healthcare, immigration and climate change, but some took the prompts in a different direction. Crespo said she is very proud of the artists and their work, and that the experience was a lot of fun.

Some created cut-and-paste collages of images of the Earth and public figures, while others painted picturesque sunsets or skylines with colored pencils. The exhibit overall displayed many types of mixed media and demonstrated the variety of interpretations the students took on their prompts.

Bashir said that the workshop made him so interested in the Constitution that he went home and read the whole document, front to back. They handed out miniature Constitutions at the event, and Bashir brought his copy to the exhibit on Wednesday.

Joe Zhao | Assistant Photo Editor

The student art displayed a variety of artwork using different types of media. From a blank slate to a colorful collage, the student art was displayed in conjunction with Syracuse Stage’s “What the Constitution Means to Me.”
Joe Zhao | Assistant Photo Editor

Although at first glance his piece appears entirely empty, when you get close to the canvas you see the words “The Future ” written in small print in the bottom right-hand corner. He hopes that his piece makes audiences think about the future of the country and the laws they want to put in place.

Mark Cass, director of the North Side Learning Center, said it was nice to see the reflections of what his students created and the themes they got out of the workshop. He thinks the exhibit has had an impact on his students.

“Our hope is that a story doesn’t die when you sit in a dark room, they turn off the lights, and we put up a stage play,” Yarrow said. “The idea is that it’s an exchange. I received the story and it affects the way I see another human being because I’ve lived in their experience for an hour and a half.”

After the workshop, the North Side Learning Center created its own constitution. They started thinking about what the rules should be, such as who can visit the center and who runs it, Cass said.

“(We are so) engaged with humanities programs from (Syracuse University), we’re all in,” Cass said. “The students now are really open to exploring things.”

The center has worked with SU engagement programs in the past, and some students from the center have gone on to attend SU. Cass said that seeing those students creates a pathway for students to follow.

“If you give (the students) something creative, they completely open up,” Yarrow said. “We really want to create that space, because artwork is just a metaphor for what you’re passionate about, period.”

The event aimed to combine the art of stage performance with other types of art and make community members feel welcome. With their artwork on the wall, Crespo said, the community should feel welcome to Syracuse Stage and involved with all performances it puts on.

Yarrow said the experience of working with these high school students was inspiring. She views the incredible young people who created the artwork as potential leaders and was struck by how much they care about the planet and one other.

“There’s the passing of the baton — for the previous generation to pass the baton to the next generation who will pass the baton to the next generation,” Yarrow said. “I really hope that (with this exhibit) people see that there is a lot of hope.

Published on September 13, 2023 at 11:29 pm