Over the course of her Bucknell career, Joselyn Busato ’24 has made a name for herself in the Bucknell arts community. Entering Bucknell as a Creative Writing Arts Merit scholar, Busato was involved in the arts community right from the start of her time at Bucknell. However, Busato’s interests don’t stop at Creative Writing. During her first year, she discovered that she also wanted to major in biology as well as be involved in theater. Due to her well-rounded interests and passions as well as her tenacious work ethic, Busato truly embodies the qualities of an Excellence in the Arts winner.
Even though these different interests seem isolated, all of them work together to inform Busato’s writing, whether it’s poetry, nonfiction, or theater. During two years of her time at Bucknell, Busato worked in a hospital, which provided inspiration for her to write a nonfiction essay for Professor Chris Camuto.
“Having that side of my brain working gave me a lot of great things to work from, a lot of great inspiration,” Busato said.
Her interdisciplinary work can also be seen in her success within the theater department. In her first year, Busato tried out for the annual cocktail plays and has since had a successful career within Bucknell Theater. This past semester, Busato starred in “God of Carnage.” When talking about how working in theater has influenced her writing, Busato said “I understand the drama of certain moments a lot better because of theater… I think that is in good conversation with being a writer.”
And her tireless work in the arts has been widely recognized. This past year, Busato was a finalist in the Kennedy Center American College Theatre Festival for a one-act play that she wrote. In 2023, she also won the Julia Fonville Smithson Memorial Prize at Bucknell, which is awarded annually to a student with tireless dedication to the creation and sharing of literature. Busato has also been published in Confetti Head, Bucknell’s student-run literary magazine.
She also spoke about how fondly she views her time at Bucknell. She emphasized how much she enjoyed the small moments, specifically with Professor Katie Hays in her Poetry and Nature class, where they partnered with local school children and taught them poetry in the park. She also spoke about her time acting in God of Carnage, saying “It all felt very full circle. It felt like it was important that we were all ending on that show.”
It’s clear to see that Joselyn Busato has displayed immense work ethic, talent, and dedication in the arts during her time at Bucknell through her dedication to creating beautiful poetry and performance art, and we wish her the best of luck in all of her future endeavors. If you want to make the most of your time in the arts community, Busato says to “try everything. But if you don’t want to try everything, go and watch other people… seeing how much fun they’re having is going to inspire you to try anyway.”
