Voices Inside: The Wyoming Performance and Writing Project

The Voices Inside: W yoming project began in Burgin, Kentucky, when I had the opportunity to work with 10 inmates at a high security prison on the basics of acting and playwriting. I became so inspired by this program that I decided to try and bring a sister program to one of the prisons in Wyoming. I contacted the state penitentiary in Rawlins, the women's prison in Lusk, and the medium security prison in Torrington. I decided to go to Torrington, and assembled a team of four faculty members and six other students to be a par t of this project with me. I proposed the idea to Warden Hargett in November, and my team and I went in for training in late January. At this point, this project is on a stand still. The prison currently has our identification badges ready, and a list of inmates who are interested in participating in the program, and the project has been approved, but we are waiting for them to tell us when we are allowed in again. However, I can safely say (having worked with the inmates in Kentucky for 3 months intensiv ely) that this project is extremely beneficial for these men, as it provides a creative outlet for them, and a way to express themselves creatively. Projects like this are known to significantly reduce recidivism rates. The Voices Inside: Wyoming project began in Burgin, Kentucky, when I had the opportunity to work with 10 inmates at a high security prison on the basics of acting and playwriting. I became so inspired by this program that I decided to try and bring a sister program to one of the prisons in Wyoming. I contacted the state penitentiary in Rawlins, the women's prison in Lusk, and the medium security prison in Torrington. I decided to go to Torrington, and assembled a team of four faculty members and six other students to be a part of this project with me. I proposed the idea to Warden Hargett in November, and my team and I went in for training in late January. At this point, this project is on a stand still. The prison currently has our identification badges ready, and a list of inmates who are interested in participating in the program, and the project has been approved, but we are waiting for them to tell us when we are allowed in again. However, I can safely say (having worked with the inmates in Kentucky for 3 months intensively) that this project is extremely beneficial for these men, as it provides a creative outlet for them, and a way to express themselves creatively. Projects like this are known to significantly reduce recidivism rates.