Celebration Takes Center Stage Once Again
By Kaitlyn Frame
Contributing Writer
Lynn’s seventh annual theatre showcase, Celebration of the Arts, is finally here, and the cast and crew are ready to show the Lynn community what they have been working on for the last five months.
Tonight, a cast made up of students, faculty and alumni will be performing show-stopping numbers to showcase their dedication and love for the arts.
Taking place in the Wold Performing Arts Center, the show will include around 20 different numbers performed on the main stage, from group performances to solos and duets.
“Celebration is a place for the whole Lynn community to come together under one roof to showcase all of the artistic talents that make up this campus,” said Carrie Simpson, director. “It’s the idea that you can have a professor or a staff member who sings or plays the guitar or paints, and they’re able to come and showcase that along with the students.”
The performers have been hard at work, rehearsing at least three times per week from noon to 2 p.m. for the entirety of the spring semester.
Led by a team of directors, choreographers and musical directors, this cast is excited to share their talent with the Lynn community.
“With this being my third year as a part of Celebration of the Arts, I look forward to sharing the stage with some of my best friends who have become family,” said De’Laija Napier, senior. “I am also excited about all of the messages of love and positivity we will bring to the audience through our performances.”
Before the show, however, there will also be plenty of performances to enjoy, like Unplugged and Celebration Circle.
Celebration Unplugged, held in the Wold’s Black Box theatre, is set up as an open mic performance where any student, faculty or alumni can come to showcase their talents.
Celebration Circle, which is occurring before the show as well, features a few more performances along with food, drinks and other activities. This event will kick off the night, starting at 5 p.m. right outside of the Wold.
Also taking place before the show is an art gallery that will be held in the lobby to showcase the talents of student artists at Lynn.
“I love coming to see the ‘shows before the show’ at Celebration of the Arts, like Unplugged and Celebration Circle,” said Kat Milian, senior. “It’s a nice little taste of what you’ll get to see on the main stage.”
The main stage show is full of show-stoppers, such as “Be Our Guest” from Beauty and the Beast, a “Survivor/I Will Survive” mashup and “This Is Me” from the recent musical movie The Greatest Showman. These and many more amazing numbers will be featured in this year’s Celebration of the Arts.
“My favorite number in Celebration is definitely ‘This Is Me’ from the Greatest Showman,” said CristaMarie DeVito, freshman. “It’s such an empowering song that points to people who go unheard or feel like they’re alone, and says ‘Hey, I see you, you’re loved and you’re beautiful.’”
After the show, to close out the fun evening, Lynn’s homegrown band Wolfhawk will perform at Celebration After Dark. The band, made up of President Kevin Ross, Adam Beighley, Jay Brandt, Alex Keller and Anthony Altieri, vice president of student affairs, will be performing after the show for the third year in a row.
No matter what part of Celebration one is attending, every experience is sure to captivate and delight audience members.
“We really have a lot of fun,” said Simpson. “Our goal when we’re on stage is to entertain and to make the audience feel something and to be happy.”
