Amaranth club hosts coffee house

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Photo by Mary McKiel

Austin Visk performs on the piano during October’s Amaranth Coffee House.

Trevor Gardner, Reporter

AACC’s Amaranth club held their monthly Amaranth Coffee House last Wednesday, featuring 13 different performers.

The club’s monthly coffee house setting allows any student to showcase their artistic talents, which could include art forms varying from improvisational comedy to being a singer/songwriter.

“Amaranth is a place designed to let students express themselves and meet people,” said faculty advisor Garrett Brown. “I do as little as possible in a good way. I let the students run things. I let the students take the show.”

The night began with Grace Bloomfield doing a martial art-style dance from the Philippines, called Eskrima. The routine is performed with two batons, called Eskrima sticks. After the routine, she gave an explanation of the history and motivation behind the dance.

Another AACC student, Ryan Howe, performed a comedic song titled called “Mary Eats Toenails”. He pulled an unsuspecting member of the audience onto the stage to join him in the song, with laughter from the audience following.

Ren Bishop performed a total of five times throughout the night. Three of Bishop’s performances included a poem and two original songs.

Not all of the students who perform at the coffee house plan their performances, nor practice them.  “We don’t plan on doing anything, but we all go up there and do things,” AACC student Rebekah Savich explained.

After the final performer finished their act, the editor-in-chief of the Amaranth Literary Magazine, Jonas Pallaro-Sonneborn, ended the night with a light-hearted joke about the club and thanked the performers and the audience for attending.

The next Amaranth coffee house will be held on Nov. 16 in HUM 112