Converting the Audience: A Conversation with Agnes Wilcox

by Becky Becker

According to Agnes Wilcox, Executive Director of Prison Performing Arts in St. Louis, Missouri, hers is not the work of a "saint." Although the average person might balk at the notion of interacting with prison inmates, finding it intimidating, worrisome, or selfsacrificial, for Agnes, Prison Performing Arts is a practical solution to a frequently overlooked social problem. In her acceptance speech for the 2003 Excellence in the Arts Award, she remarked, "I hope that you didn't give me this award because you think I'm some sort of saint. I work with incarcerated people because I know that they're going to get out. They're going to become my neighbor. I want them to be literate, creative, and productive citizens. My work is purely selfish." Because we all live in society, Agnes believes that ensuring the emotional and intellectual growth and well-being of prison inmates—many of whom return to their homes after serving time—is a social responsibility.