“I could not hold back my emotions as I sang along, and even now as I write this I am moved to tears.”
Alex Diaz-Hui, a Ph.D. candidate in the Department of English and the Program in Latin American Studies, reflected on a performance at McCarter Theatre last fall – a concert featuring the multi-GRAMMY-winning Mexican singer Natalia Lafourcade.
Diaz-Hui’s essay was written as part of “The Scholar’s Take,” a new series that brings graduate student research, expertise, and curiosity into dialogue with the performing arts.
A partnership between McCarter Theatre Center and GradFUTURES, the initiative provides graduate students with the opportunity to experience a variety of performances on McCarter’s stages and share their insights with a broader audience. Within a collaborative writing environment, students craft short essays that expand upon the subjects, themes, or aesthetics of their chosen performance and offer additional context for readers and interested attendees.
Since the program’s inception in 2023, a dozen students from across disciplines have contributed reflections inspired by their experiences at the theater. Essays have covered a range of works – including the aerial performance “Noli Timere,” the Pulitzer Prize-winning play “Primary Trust,” and “Empire Records: The Musical.”
“The Scholar’s Take” is part of McCarter’s Arts & Ideas program, co-sponsored by the Humanities Council.
Graduate students interested in joining the 2025-26 cohort of “The Scholar’s Take” are encouraged to visit the program’s website. Applications will open in Fall 2025. Contact Debbie Bisno, director of university and artistic partnerships at McCarter Theatre, or Peter Benson, Ph.D. Candidate in the Department of English, for more information.
Read all available essays on the GradFUTURES website.
Learn more about Arts & Ideas and upcoming programs on the McCarter Theatre Center website.
