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Actor Joshua Brown and visual artist Quoc Bui are the 49th and 50th Arts Academy students to receive the prestigious designation.
Interlochen Arts Academy's 2022 Presidential Scholar in the Arts finalists (L-R): Joshua Brown and Quoc Bui.
Interlochen Arts Academy seniors Joshua Brown and Quoc Bui have been selected as 2022 U.S. Presidential Scholars in the Arts.
Brown, an actor from Windermere, Florida, and Bui, a visual artist from Fargo, North Dakota, were among the 20 students selected by the White House Commission on Presidential Scholars to receive the prestigious honor.
"Our 2022 Presidential Scholars represent the best of America, and remind us that when empowered by education, there are no limits to what our young people can achieve," U.S. Secretary of Education Miguel Cardona said in a statement. "Today, I join President Biden to celebrate a class of scholars whose pursuit of knowledge, generosity of spirit, and exceptional talents bring our nation tremendous pride. Throughout one of the most trying periods in our nation's history and amid our recovery from the pandemic, our students have once again demonstrated their strength and that they have so much to contribute to our country. Thanks to them, I know America's future is bright."
Since the U.S. Presidential Scholars Program was founded in 1964, 50 Interlochen Arts Academy students have been selected as presidential scholars—more than any other high school in the nation. This year marks the third time in Arts Academy history, and the second year in a row, where the institution produced two Presidential Scholar finalists in a given year.
“The Interlochen community is so proud of Joshua and Quoc,” said Interlochen Center for the Arts Provost Camille Colatosti. “To have two students selected as presidential scholar finalists in back-to-back years is unprecedented. It is a true testament to the passion and purpose of our young artists.”
Presidential Scholars in the Arts candidates are identified through the national YoungArts competition, a highly regarded national recognition program for young artists ages 15-18. As presidential scholars, Brown and Bui will be recognized for their outstanding achievements this summer with an online recognition program.
Jonah Cohen won top honors in the Music Teachers National Association (MTNA) Senior Composition Competition finals
Interlochen Arts Academy senior Jonah Cohen is a composer, pianist, and cellist who has received recognition from the National YoungArts Foundation, National Young Composers Challenge, Foundation for Modern Music, and many others.
"I am so honored to have been selected as the winner in the Senior Division of the 2021-22 Music Teachers National Association Composition Competition for my piece Hineni for cello choir,” said Jonah Cohen of Farmington Hills, Michigan. “Thanks so much to my teachers, Dr. Cynthia Van Maanen and Mr. Sawyer Denton, for their invaluable advice and support, and to the Tennessee Cello Workshop for presenting the world premiere performance of this piece!"
The three-tiered MTNA Senior Composition Competition begins at the state level. First-place winners of each state’s competition advance to a division competition. Division winners compete in the national finals. As the national competition winner, Cohen received $2,000 provided by MTNA Foundation Fund. The senior level is open to musicians ages 15 to 18.
MTNA is a nonprofit organization of independent and collegiate music teachers committed to furthering the art of music through teaching, performance, composition, and scholarly research. Founded in 1876, MTNA is the oldest professional music teachers association in the United States.
The Interlochen Arts Academy alumna has performed across North America, Europe, and Australia.
Kara Huber, an award-winning pianist and conductor, has been appointed Instructor of Piano at Interlochen Arts Academy. Huber will begin her new role on August 22.
Hailed as “absolutely dazzling…in a word, flawless” (New York Concert Review) in her Carnegie Hall debut, Huber has performed across North America, Europe, and Australia, including lauded solo appearances at the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, the Piano Virtuoso Series at the Canadian Opera Company, the Rising Stars Piano Series in Southampton, New York, and Steinway Series at the Smithsonian American Art Museum. She has received numerous prizes and awards for her performances, including the Audience Favorite Award in the Cincinnati World Piano Competition.
A 2006 graduate of Interlochen Arts Academy, where she studied piano with Michael Coonrod, Huber received additional training at the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music with Awadagin Pratt and the Glenn Gould School of the Royal Conservatory of Music with John Perry and Leon Fleisher. She recently completed a DMA in piano and conducting at the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music and served on the faculty of the University of Louisville School of Music.
“Interlochen Arts Academy played a formative role in the trajectory of my life and is one of my favorite places in the world,” Huber said. “I’m excited to share my experiences with the next generation and to continue the legacy of my former teacher at Interlochen, Dr. Michael Coonrod.”
“With her robust experience as a performer and educator and her passion for Interlochen, Dr. Huber will be a wonderful mentor to our young artists and addition to our music department,” said Interlochen Director of Music Enrique Márquez. “We’re thrilled to welcome her back to campus.”
Huber joins Interlochen at a time of exciting momentum in the Music Department. This July, for the fourth consecutive summer, musicians from the Detroit Symphony Orchestra will mentor Interlochen Arts Camp students. In 2021, acclaimed violinists Tina Chang Qu and Jorja Fleezanis and award-winning trumpeter Josh Lawrence joined the faculty. The renowned conductor Cristian Măcelaru became the inaugural Artistic Director and Principal Conductor of the World Youth Symphony Orchestra in 2019, the Arts Camp’s flagship musical ensemble, following the opening of Interlochen’s $24 million state-of-the-art Music Center.
Approximately 96% of graduating seniors were accepted into one of their top three colleges.
Interlochen Arts Academy Class of 2022 graduates plan to attend top colleges, universities, art schools, and conservatories. Approximately 96% of graduating seniors were accepted into one of their top three colleges.
Academy graduating seniors will attend prestigious institutions in the fall including Columbia University, Northwestern University, Princeton University, Stanford University, Yale University, New York University, Cornell University, and the University of Michigan - Ann Arbor.
Renowned art schools and conservatories that will welcome Academy students include the Curtis Institute of Music, New England Conservatory of Music, Pratt Institute, Eastman School of Music, University of North Carolina School of the Arts, Manhattan School of Music, Indiana University Jacobs School of Music, Liverpool Institute for Performing Arts, Ringling College of Arts and Design, Carnegie Mellon University School of Fine Arts, Boston University College of Fine Arts, the Royal Academy of Music, Vanderbilt University’s Blair School of Music, and California Institute of the Arts.
During their junior and senior years, Arts Academy students work closely with Interlochen college counselors to support the college admissions process. Formal college planning begins in January of junior year, when students engage in workshops followed by individual and small group meetings with their assigned counselor.
The Arts Academy’s academic and college counselors work with each student to develop an individualized plan that meets their individual needs and goals. “We take pride in supporting our students through the entire college application and decision process and are deeply proud to see them embark upon paths that best support their goals and aspirations,” said Chad Gapinski, Interlochen’s executive director of advising & counseling services.
Nine newly announced performers join the festival's first full lineup of summer concerts since 2019. Tickets for newly announced artists are on sale now.
Interlochen Center for the Arts has unveiled the full lineup for its 2022 Interlochen Arts Festival with the announcement of nine additional performers: Phish frontman Trey Anastasio, blues legend Buddy Guy and Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame John Hiatt & The Goners, pop rising stars Fitz and the Tantrums with Andy Grammer, reggae artist Ziggy Marley, Beatles tribute band The Fab Four, Grammy Award-winning alternative rock band Wilco, multiplatinum country artist Chris Young, Michigan-based singer-songwriter Joshua Davis, and Grammy Award-winning vocal sextet The King's Singers. Tickets for newly announced performances are on sale now at interlochen.org/tickets.
Additional performers for the 2022 Interlochen Arts Festival were announced earlier this spring and include Bonnie Raitt, Darius Rucker, Air Supply, the Detroit Symphony Orchestra, Bruce Hornsby & the Noisemakers, Brothers Osborne, Jeremy Camp, and Boz Scaggs with Robert Cray. Tickets for these performances are currently available at interlochen.org/tickets.
"We're incredibly excited to welcome friends and visitors back to Interlochen for our first full lineup of summer concerts since 2019," said Interlochen Center for the Arts President Trey Devey. "With a wide range of genres and musical styles, there is a show for everyone who loves live music."
A much anticipated northern Michigan tradition, the Interlochen Arts Festival has brought top-tier performers to Interlochen's wooded campus since 1964. In recent years, the Arts Festival has attracted audiences of more than 130,000 patrons annually, making it one of the largest arts festivals in northern Michigan. Summer festival events are primarily hosted at Kresge Auditorium, a 4,000-seat outdoor venue on the shores of scenic Green Lake.
Proceeds from ticket sales for Interlochen performances fund scholarships for deserving young artists to attend Interlochen Arts Camp and Interlochen Arts Academy, making the Interlochen experience accessible to hundreds of students around the world.
Trey Anastasio will be in acoustic mode at Kresge Auditorium on Tuesday, June 21. As a founding member of Phish, one of the most successful and innovative rock bands of all time, composer/guitarist/vocalist Anastasio has forged a multi-faceted, Grammy-nominated career spanning numerous genres. He's collaborated with artists such as Dave Matthews, Herbie Hancock, Carlos Santana, Toots and the Maytals, B. B. King and The Roots, performed his original compositions with numerous symphonies including the New York Philharmonic and the Los Angeles Philharmonic, and received a Tony-nomination for Best Original Score for the music he co-wrote for the Broadway musical, Hands on a Hardbody. Don't miss this dynamic frontman taking center stage at Interlochen. Tickets start at $35.
Buddy Guy and John Hiatt & The Goners will be at Kresge Auditorium on Tuesday, July 19. Praised by Eric Clapton as "the best guitar player alive," Guy remains one of the brightest stars of the blues genre. The Rock and Roll Hall of Famer has produced 18 solo albums across his six-decade career, earning eight Grammy Awards, a Recording Academy Lifetime Achievement Award, and a National Medal of the Arts along the way. Prolific singer-songwriter John Hiatt and his backing band, The Goners, join Guy for a one-in-a-kind collaboration. Lauded by The Los Angeles Times as "one of rock's most astute singer-songwriters of the last 40 years," Hiatt has produced 22 albums, earned ten Grammy nominations, and won the Americana Music Association's Lifetime Achievement Award for Songwriting. Don't miss your chance to see two incredible artists in one unparalleled evening of music. Tickets start at $35.
On Thursday, Aug. 11, Kresge Auditorium will see Fitz and the Tantrums with Andy Grammer. Experience two of pop's rising stars in one incredible performance. Since forming in 2008, Fitz and the Tantrums quickly evolved from indie upstarts to bonafide hitmakers. The sextet's trademark style—described by Rolling Stone as a "sparkling pop gloss on a familiar Motown sound"—is instantly recognizable in RIAA Platinum-certified singles like "The Walker," "Out of My League," and the smash hit "HandClap." Hailed by Parade for his "brilliant composition and performance," singer, songwriter, and record producer Andy Grammer energizes audiences with stomping, stadium-size pop anthems. Best known for his toe-tapping quadruple-platinum single "Honey, I'm Good," the Sports Emmy Award winner and Dancing With the Stars alumnus continues to crank out hits such as "Fresh Eyes," "Keep Your Head Up," and "Don't Give Up On Me." Tickets start at $35.
Ziggy Marley will perform "A Live Tribute To His Father" on Friday, Aug. 12 at 7:30 p.m. at Kresge Auditorium. The son of legendary reggae icon Bob Marley, Marley has carved his own path as a musical pioneer. An eight-time Grammy Award winner, Marley has produced eight studio albums, infusing the reggae genre with elements of funk, blues, and rock in hits like "Tomorrow People," True to Myself," and "Beach in Hawaii." Outside the studio, Marley leverages his skills as a master storyteller and motivational guide to advocate for environmental awareness, self-empowerment, and the transformative power of love. Join the Emmy Award winner, musician, activist, and humanitarian for an evening of music worthy of his family name. Tickets start at $38.
Wilco will be at Kresge Auditorium on Wednesday, August 17. "To see Wilco on stage is to hear the best of the best" (NPR). Throughout the past two-plus decades, the Grammy-Award winning Wilco has been a mainstay in alternative rock, releasing 11 studio albums, generating numerous Billboard hits, and selling out packed shows across the country. The band's latest album, Ode To Joy, presents a unique rhythm track and a minimalist instrumentation, with its extrospective lead single "Love is Everywhere (Beware),"exploring the dual joy and threat of love. Come see the band behind "You Never Know," " I Am Trying to Break Your Heart" and "I Might," that Rolling Stone proclaimed as "America's foremost rock impressionists." Tickets start at $35.
Performing at Kresge Auditorium on Friday, Aug. 19, Grammy- and ACM-nominated Chris Young stands out in the country genre with his distinctive baritone and memorable storytelling. Since signing with RCA Nashville at the age of 20, the multi-platinum artist has amassed nearly five billion career streams and 12 number one hits, 10 as a songwriter. Named one of Billboard's top country artists of the decade, Young performs to capacity crowds around the world with a hit-packed set that highlights his chart-toppers including "Losing Sleep," "Sober Saturday Night," "Think Of You," and "I'm Comin' Over". "Famous Friends" – Young's platinum-certified, multi-week chart-topping song with Kane Brown earned the top spot on Billboard's year-end Country Airplay Songs chart for 2021. Tickets start at $50.
Michigan-based singer, songwriter, and guitarist Joshua Davis will take the stage at Corson Auditorium on Saturday, Aug. 20 at 7:30 p.m. As a finalist on Season 8 of NBC's The Voice, Davis captivated the nation with his warm voice, earnest poetic sensibility, and uncanny gift for connecting with audiences. Since then, Davis has churned out an album a year, each a thoughtful dispatch on love, life, change, and growth. After 20 years on the local and national stage, Davis continues to delight audiences with his intimate performances and unique blend of American roots traditions. Tickets start at $28.
The Fab Four will perform on Friday, Aug. 26 at 7:30 p.m. in Kresge Auditorium. Widely regarded as one of the finest Beatles tribute bands, The Fab Four have amazed audiences across the globe with their precise attention to detail and note-for-note renditions. The Emmy Award-winning ensemble traces the beloved band from Liverpool to Let It Be, highlighting every era of the Beatles' remarkable career through costume changes and uncanny performances of classic Beatles hits such as "Can't Buy Me Love," "Yesterday," "Here Comes The Sun," and "Hey Jude." Join the Fab Four for The Ultimate Tribute and relive one of the most iconic bands in rock and roll history. Tickets start at $35.
The King's Singers will take the stage at Corson Auditorium on Wednesday, July 6 at 7:30 p.m. Internationally renowned for their precise musical craft and British charm, the vocal sextet are global ambassadors for choral excellence. Over the past 50 years, the ensemble has appeared in the world's finest concert halls and earned two Grammy Awards, an Emmy Award, and a place in Gramophone's Hall of Fame. The ensemble's diverse repertoire ranges from popular music transcriptions to works commissioned from the greatest composers of our time, including John Tavener, Eric Whitacre, Judith Bingham, and Luciano Berio. Join The King's Singers as they share the joy of singing and the exciting future of music. Tickets are $38.
Current COVID-19 guidelines for patrons are available at interlochen.org/covid-19. All ticket holders will be notified of any changes in COVID-19 policies via email prior to the performance date. COVID-19 vaccinations are highly recommended for eligible visitors.
The reimagining of the myth of Odysseus will feature original music, choreography, and design by Arts Academy students.
This month the Interlochen Arts Academy Theatre Division will present the theatrical adaptation of Margaret Atwood’s critically acclaimed 2005 novella, The Penelopiad.
Performances will take place at Interlochen’s Phoenix Theatre on Friday, April 29 at 7:30 p.m.; Saturday, April 30 at 2 p.m.; and Saturday, April 30 at 7:30 p.m. Tickets are available at interlochen.org/tickets.
Adapted for the stage by the author herself, The Penelopiad reimagines Homer’s The Odyssey from the perspective of Penelope, wife of Odysseus and cousin of Helen of Troy. Atwood crafts a story of greed and murder that reimagines the Penelope immortalized in myth as the loyal wife of Odysseus who silently weaves as she waits for her husband’s return.
“Margaret Atwood has made a career out of complicating the things we accept in our society, particularly misogyny, to often uncomfortable and always thoughtful effect,” says Interlochen Arts Academy Instructor of Theatre Andrew McGinn, who is directing the performance. “Our Penelope—traditionally considered the mythological paragon of patience and loyalty—argues that she wasn’t just patient: She was put in an impossible bind and surrounded by threats.”
“Meanwhile, Atwood complicates things further by giving a leading role to Odysseus' maids, who were put to death almost immediately after his arrival back to Ithaca,” McGinn continues. “These maids do not forgive Penelope for her patience and loyalty. The Penelopiad puts all the forces at play in front of the audience and asks, 'Who's guilty, and who’s the victim?'”
The production will feature original music, choreography, and design by Arts Academy theatre students—the most student collaboration ever incorporated into one of the Academy’s mainstage theatre productions. Juniors Tatiana Arias and Margaret Deely and senior Hudson Orfe wrote the show’s original score, while postgraduate student Sydney Manno created the production’s original choreography. Students from the division’s Design & Production program developed all aspects of the production’s design, including sets, costumes, and lighting.
The Interlochen Arts Academy theatre division provides accelerated pre-professional training in acting, musical theatre, and theatre design & production for aspiring performers and technicians in grades 9-12. Since its establishment in 1962, the program has produced dozens of successful actors, designers, and theatre professionals, including Oscar-winning actor Linda Hunt, Tony-nominated actor and director Michael Arden, Emmy Award-winning actor Tom Hulce, and Tony-nominated set designer Dane Laffrey, among many others.
(Please note: The Penelopiad contains adult themes and may not be appropriate for young audiences.)
Broadway veteran and Director of Musical Theatre Justin Lee Miller directs Interlochen Arts Academy’s high-octane production of the Tony Award-winning musical.
The Interlochen Arts Academy Theatre Division will bring an iconic love story to life this spring with their new production of Rodgers and Hammerstein’s Tony Award-winning musical Oklahoma! at Corson Auditorium. Performances will take place Friday, May 6 at 7:30 p.m., and Saturday, May 7 at 2:00 and 7:30 p.m. Tickets are available at interlochen.org/tickets.
The first musical written by the theatre-writing team of composer Richard Rodgers and lyricist-dramatist Oscar Hammerstein II, Oklahoma! tells the story of farm girl Laurey Williams and two rival suitors, cowboy Curly McLain and farmhand Jud Fry. A box office hit, the original Broadway production was set in 1906 and opened on March 31, 1943. It inspired award-winning revivals, national tours, foreign productions, and an Oscar-winning 1955 film adaptation. Rodgers and Hammerstein won a special Pulitzer Prize for Oklahoma! in 1944.
Broadway veteran and Director of Musical Theatre Justin Lee Miller selected and directed Interlochen’s production. “The concept for Oklahoma! really came out of conversations I had with the late Harold Prince during rehearsals for The Phantom of the Opera,” Miller said. “He would often talk about his military service and how most of the people in his generation in the New York theater scene had served in WWII. This is a totally foreign concept for students today.”
Interlochen’s production takes place in a rehearsal in the 1940s. “My goal is to have the piece reflect the spirit of the era in which it was written. It’s not a documentary about the Old West; it instead presents an idealized fairy tale of the Old West. Oklahoma! is a musical about young love, new beginnings, and the American can-do spirit. It reflects the idea that the American experiment is essentially a good thing and that American values are worth fighting for.”
The Interlochen Arts Academy Theatre Division provides accelerated pre-professional training in acting, musical theatre, and theatre design & production for aspiring performers and technicians in grades 9-12. Since its establishment in 1962, the program has produced dozens of successful actors, designers, and theatre professionals, including Oscar-winning actor Linda Hunt, Tony-nominated actor and director Michael Arden, Emmy Award-winning actor Tom Hulce, and Tony-nominated set designer Dane Laffrey, among many others.
Founded by Rosalyn Tureck (1913–2003)—a celebrated keyboard artist, teacher, conductor, and scholar—the Tureck Bach Research Institute at Interlochen will preserve her scholarship, performances, and teaching and further research and performance of the music of J.S. Bach.
The Tureck Bach Research Institute has a new home at Interlochen Center for the Arts. Founded by Rosalyn Tureck (1913–2003)—a celebrated keyboard artist, teacher, conductor, and scholar—the institute holds materials amassed over Tureck’s nearly 80-year career, including manuscripts of essays, books, correspondence, and other documents, as well as recordings of her live performances, lectures, and master classes.
As of today, the institute’s digital archive can be found on the Interlochen website at interlochen.org/tureck-bach. Photographs, documents, and recordings are available to researchers around the world.
“Dr. Rosalyn Tureck’s pioneering work as among one of the first women to conduct the New York Philharmonic, her thought leadership in disciplines as wide-ranging as fractal geometry and politics, and her musical scholarship and advocacy for women make her a role model for Interlochen students,” said Interlochen Center for the Arts President Trey Devey. “We’re thrilled and honored to preserve and showcase her legacy through the Tureck Back Research Institute at Interlochen.”
Tureck founded the Tureck Bach Research Institute in 1981 to promote research and performance of the music of Johann Sebastian Bach. From 2015 until earlier this year, the institute resided at the Curtis Institute of Music. Interlochen was among several prestigious institutions invited by Kevin Kleinmann, former president of the Tureck Bach Research Institute, to develop a proposal to serve as its new home.
“Few institutions could be as representative as Interlochen of everything that Rosalyn Tureck stood for and worked towards during her illustrious life and career,” said Kleinmann. “Like Interlochen, the Tureck Bach Research Institute champions diversified arts education programs that create synergies between different disciplines and backgrounds. Together we will foster future leaders, educators, and personalities of the arts world and our societies.”
As part of Interlochen’s acquisition of the institute, the Dr. Rosalyn Tureck/Bach Scholarship will provide a scholarship to a female high school-aged piano/keyboard student to attend Interlochen Arts Academy each year. An annual “Dr. Rosalyn Tureck Memorial Concert” at Interlochen will showcase the scholarship recipient and other Arts Academy musicians. Interlochen Arts Academy is the nation’s premier boarding arts high school, where emerging artists transform passion and potential into purpose.
Additionally, a piano practice room in the Music Center on the Interlochen campus will be named in Tureck’s honor. A bust of Tureck by the American-British sculptor Sir Jacob Epstein (1880-1959), considered one of the most important pioneers of modern 20th century sculpture, will also be displayed.
“Rosalyn Tureck was one of the most remarkable minds of the 20th century,” said Interlochen Public Radio Music Director and musicology scholar Amanda Sewell. “Her meticulous research into and writings about the music of Bach are unparalleled. We at Classical IPR are thrilled to add her extensive collection of recordings to our broadcast library and share them with our listeners.”
Recordings from the institute will be incorporated into Interlochen coursework and broadcasted on Classical IPR, Interlochen Public Radio’s classical music station. Materials from the institute will also be woven into workshops for piano performers and music educators run by Interlochen College of Creative Arts.
Delta David Gier, conductor of the South Dakota Symphony, follows in the footsteps of previous honorees John Adams, Howard Hanson, and Frederic Fennell.
Interlochen Arts Camp alumnus Delta David Gier (IAC/NMC 77), conductor of the South Dakota Symphony, has been awarded the 2022 Ditson Conductor’s Award. Established in 1945 as part of the Alice M. Ditson Fund, the prestigious award honors conductors who have a distinguished record of championing contemporary American music.
Gier has served as conductor of the South Dakota Symphony Orchestra (SDSO) since 2004. Over the course of his career Gier has also conducted the New York Philharmonic, the Philadelphia Orchestra, the Cleveland Orchestra, the Chicago Symphony, the St. Louis Symphony, and the Minnesota Orchestra. Last season he conducted the American Composers Orchestra in the inaugural concert of the China-U.S Composers Project. This season will include engagements with several Chinese orchestras and master classes at the Shanghai Conservatory.
Gier also helped develop the SDSO’s Lakota Music Project to help address racial tensions between Native Americans and whites in the region the SDSO serves. Now in its sixth year, the project is a side-by-side program with the SDSO and Lakota musicians which explores the role music plays in their respective cultures, seeking to foster understanding and healing between estranged peoples.
Gier studied trumpet at Interlochen in 1977 and later spent a summer on the Camp staff as part of the stage crew.
Previous winners of the Ditson Conductor’s Award with Interlochen connections include Howard Hanson, composer of “The Interlochen Theme,” which he wrote as part of his Symphony No. 2 while visiting Interlochen in 1928; and Frederic Fennell, who served as principal guest conductor at Arts Academy and Camp starting in 1940, and every decade into the 1990s.
The award-winning writer, educator, and visual artist will join Interlochen from Christian Brothers University, where she currently serves as associate professor of creative writing and literature.
Karyna McGlynn, an award-winning writer, educator, and visual artist, will join Interlochen Center for the Arts in June as Director of Creative Writing.
“Karyna brings with her a wealth of talent and experience, and will be a strong leader and mentor in our Creative Writing department,” said Interlochen Provost Camille Colatosti. “Young writers at Interlochen Arts Academy and Arts Camp will benefit immeasurably from her guidance and expertise as they transform their passion and potential into purpose.”
“I’m thrilled to join the Interlochen community,” McGlynn said. “Interlochen's mission reflects everything I emphasize as an arts educator: personalized mentorship, experiential learning, holistic care, interdisciplinary collaboration, diversity of perspective, and creative excellence.”
“I’ve been working with emerging artists on both page and stage for the past 15 years, and I can't imagine a more rewarding profession,” McGlynn continued. “Both in and out of the classroom I strive to model the traits of the best writing mentors I ever had: wonder, enthusiasm, kindness, clarity, bravery, creative activity, personal attention, and community engagement.”
McGlynn will join Interlochen from Christian Brothers University, where she currently serves as associate professor of creative writing and literature. McGlynn holds an MFA in creative writing from the University of Michigan, and earned her PhD in literature and creative writing from the University of Houston, where she served as managing editor for Gulf Coast. She has been a member of five National Poetry Slam teams, and was a finalist for the Women of the World Poetry Slam. Other honors include the Rumi Prize for Poetry, the Kathryn A. Morton Prize, the Verlaine Prize in Poetry, the Academy of American Poets' Prize, the Zell Fellowship in Poetry, the Hopwood Award, the Diane Middlebrook Poetry Fellowship at the University of Wisconsin Institute for Creative Writing, the Florida Review Editors’ Award in Fiction, and visiting professorships at Illinois College and Oberlin College.
McGlynn’s new poetry collection, 50 Things Kate Bush Taught Me About the Multiverse, is currently available for pre-order through Sarabande Books. Her previous collection, Hothouse, was a New York Times Editor’s Choice. Her writing has recently appeared in the Kenyon Review, Ploughshares, New England Review, Georgia Review, Black Warrior Review, Witness, Ninth Letter, and the Academy of American Poet’ Poem-A-Day.
Interlochen's one-of-a-kind creative writing programs provide expert instruction to young writers from around the world in an ideal setting. Students benefit from small class sizes and a faculty of experienced and dedicated teachers who are also professional writers. Faculty provide individualized mentorship to students in building portfolios, submitting to contests, applying to college, and honing performance skills for public reading opportunities throughout the year.
Current Director of Creative Writing Joe Sacksteder will leave Interlochen at the end of this Academy year to pursue a PhD.