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Coast is Queer Sussex Student Curators: Melissa Telles (she/her), Benedict Welsh (he/him), Sarah Barclay Boira (they/them).

The University of Sussex's School of Media, Arts, and Humanities is thrilled to announce its collaboration with the Coast is Queer - Brighton & Hove's LGTBQ+ literature festival that takes place between 12-15 October 2023.

The Coast is Queer festival, known as the UK's Biggest & Brightest LGBTQ+ literature festival, celebrates contemporary LGBTQ+ writing and brings together authors, readers, and enthusiasts from all walks of life. For those passionate about queer literature, this festival offers a unique opportunity to delve deep into the diverse world of LGBTQ+ storytelling.

This year, as part of their new Student Curator programme, the festival enlisted the expertise of five student curators from the University of Sussex – Melissa Telles, Sarah Barclay Boira, Benedict Welch, Simon Hauwaerts, and Alessandra Duse – alongside three students from the University of Brighton.

Drawing on their individual expertise and unique skills, the students have worked with festival organisers to curate a range of events that will take place on Friday the 13 October.  These student-led events promise to be one of the highlights of the festival, including the “Invisible Identities” panel, which aims to celebrate the diverse experiences within the LGBTQ+ community.

Dr. Samuel Solomon, Senior Lecturer in English Literature and Creative Writing and steering committee member of the Centre for the Study of Sexual Dissidence is on the festival’s advisory board and has been part of the programming team since the festival’s first year. He worked closely with the student curators in the lead-up to this year's festival. 

Sam expressed his excitement about the student curators program, saying: "It was a special pleasure this year to inaugurate and supervise the Student Curators program with Dr. Vedrana Velickovic of Brighton University and Lesley Wood of New Writing South. The students brought remarkable energy, professionalism, and sophisticated ideas to the project, and the festival is all the better for their involvement."

Three of Sussex's student curators, Melissa Telles, Sarah Barclay Boira, and Benedict Welch, shared their thoughts about their involvement in the project.

Melissa Telles, a master's student in Creative and Critical Writing at the University of Sussex, explained: "I wanted to get involved with this project because it's not always that you're given the opportunity to work with something so rooted within your identity. As someone who identifies as queer, the chance to work as a student curator with Coast is Queer gave me a space to put forth my ideas and allowed me an opportunity me to help define/redefine and even educate a large audience on the LGBTQIA+ communities."

Sarah Barclay Boira, who recently completed their MA in Sexual Dissidence at Sussex, expressed their enthusiasm for community-based queer literature initiatives, saying: "I wanted to be involved in curating the Coast is Queer because it feels so important to me that the queer work we do at universities is grounded in community."

Benedict Welch, a PhD student at the University of Sussex researching the choreographic imaginaries of artists and writers during the HIV/AIDS Crisis, spoke about the importance of the festival and the valuable experience it offers, stating: "Being involved in the festival has also allowed me an insight into how such events are organised and, as I look ahead to life after the PhD, this kind of experience is invaluable."

The Coast is Queer runs from the 12 - 15 October 2023 at the Attenborough Centre for Creative Arts. 

Read more about the events and how to book 

Further information: https://coastisqueer.com/

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