Students Work With Performance Poet
Eva with former tutor Toby Lynch
Published poet Eva Curless studied English at St John Rigby College, where she developed a real love of writing. With the encouragement of her English teacher, Toby Lynch, she started to share her work with the local community. After her performance poetry debut at The Old Courts in Wigan, Eva became a frequenter of local open-mic nights.
With the help of SJR, the aspiring English teacher earned a place at the University of Leeds. Alongside her English Literature course, she found the time to win reputable poetry slams and to perform at local festivals such as the Wigan Diggers.
After recently graduating, Eva returned to her former college to inspire the Future Writers elective students. The group participated in an engaging workshop, exploring the link between poetry and music. By the end of the session, the students had gained an insight into performance poetry. They even managed to compile their favourite song lyrics into a Shakespearean sonnet.
Speaking after the workshop, Eva said: “It was a privilege to work with such talented students. Their enthusiasm was a breath of fresh air and their writing was outstanding. It was also wonderful to be back at St John Rigby College; the English department supported me a great deal and I was glad to help them inspire more young people.”