by Charissa Ricker | Apr 12, 2019 | Arts and Entertainment, News Slider
American Idol finalist and award-winning Gospel singer Colton Dixon performed with Cody Fry in Collins auditorium Wednesday night. The concert, presented by the College of Entertainment and the Arts, included the Lipscomb a Cappella Singers, the Chamber Orchestra and commercial music students throughout the performance. Music professor Ben Blasko has been friends with Dixon for several years and reached out to Dixon about the performance. Though Dixon said he would trust Blasko “with his life,” he said he was originally nervous about playing with the students. “If you have any of my records, they don’t sound anything like this, but that’s kind of the fun of music, right, you get to reimagine songs that were created in my head,” Dixon said. Blasko is not Dixon’s only tie to Lipscomb, he said he considered attending the university before his American Idol audition. The singer-songwriter auditioned for season 10 but didn’t make it to the top 25. Dixon came back the next year to support his sister, unexpectedly auditioned and made it to the top seven before getting voted off the show. “This music career has been quite a journey,” Dixon said. “It all started in Murfreesboro, Tennessee, just down the road, and I actually had a scholarship to come to Lipscomb. I wound up not really going to college anyway so it doesn’t really matter.” Dixon quickly made a name for himself in the Gospel community, winning a Dove award in 2013 and 2015. But instead of playing all of his well-known songs during the concert, he chose to perform a song that didn’t make the cut on his original...
by Kathryn Farris | Apr 7, 2019 | Arts and Entertainment, News Slider
The 56th annual Singarama wrapped up Saturday evening, with the coveted Sweepstakes awarded to “The Wonder Years.” The Sweepstakes award represents a fourth win for “The Wonder Years” after consecutively winning all three other awards for Theme, Music and Staging. The winning group was comprised of the social clubs Phi Sigma, Theta Psi and Kappa Chi, as well as several “friends.” “The Wonder Years” tells the tale of “most responsible child” Andrew Foster, played by Dane Mortensen. After his parents leave for a “business trip,” Andrew’s “Glammy” whisks him and his two younger siblings away to a weekend biblical retreat. “It just means that even in times when there’s unknown and there’s wonder to be had in life, life can still be wonderful,” director Myron Sailors said on the meaning behind the show. “There’s no reason to stress about not knowing what’s coming next because that’s just part of life.” Months of preparation went into the mini-musical. Sailors spoke on how highly he valued the work put in by the production team and cast. “My production team that was right there with me through it all and my cast that was just so encouraging and worked so hard…Without them, none of this would have happened.” This year’s performances were hosted by Berkley Boglin, Luke Howard, Hudson Parker, Peytan Porter, Alexa Williams and Brittney Wood. The group preformed various songs between productions such as “Bring the Family,” “You are the Reason,” “Family is Family,” “Ladies in the 90’s” and “Baby.” The night opened up with the production of “The Good Times,” which follows Rachel, played by Diana Dockery, and her...
by Kathryn Farris | Apr 5, 2019 | Arts and Entertainment, News Slider
Despite Thursday’s disappointing basketball loss, Lipscomb didn’t hesitate to “Bring the Family” to the 56th annual Singarama show. Students gathered together in Collins Alumni Auditorium on Thursday, Friday and Saturday afternoon to see the first of three Singarama shows. “The Wonder Years” show, directed by Myron Sailors, took home “best theme” on Thursday night, “best music” on Friday night and “best staging” on Saturday afternoon. The two other groups are titled “Good Times” and “Perfect Strangers.” Only one show remains on Saturday night, which will reveal the “Sweepstakes” winner. The winning group for both nights was comprised of the social clubs Phi Sigma, Theta Psi and Kappa Chi, as well as several “friends.” Junior Emma Andrews said she joined “The Wonder Years” because of her love for performance. “I’m actually a theater minor, so I love dancing and singing,” she said. “I heard that anyone can join, even if you’re not in a club, so one of my friends invited me.” Andrews said winning was due to the great team the show has working together. “It’s all up to our writers,” Andrews said. “We performed as great as we can but props to the production team that put it together.” The Saturday matinee will award for “staging,” and the coveted Singarama Sweepstakes award will honor its winner Saturday evening. This story was updated after Singarama show three on Saturday, April...
by Erin Franklin | Apr 3, 2019 | Arts and Entertainment, News Slider, Sports
It’s a little like High School Musical. Thursday night, Lipscomb men’s basketball takes on Texas in the NIT championship at Madison Square Garden (MSG) in New York City. But back on campus in Nashville, students are also gearing up for opening night of Singarama, a song-and-dance competition that’s been going on for decades. A large chunk of Lipscomb students participate in Singarama, especially those in Greek Life. And while some students are taking advantage of the bus Lipscomb sponsored to MSG, students who are in Singarama are preparing for opening night of the anticipated show. Luke Shoulders (second from left in featured photo) is possibly one of Lipscomb basketball’s biggest fans. He’s been dedicated to dressing out and cheering on the Bisons all season. But he’s also heavily involved in Singarama and has a main role in this year’s show, playing “Dad (Jim Foster)” in the “Wonder Years” show, so he won’t be making the biggest trip of the season to watch Lipscomb play in the championship. “I love the Lipscomb student experience,” Shoulders said. “I believe in joy and excitement in abundance where people are gathered. Both basketball and Singarama give me that experience. I get the excitement of cheering on a sport that I’ve grown to love in basketball, and I get to perform with people I love in Singarama. Basketball and Singarama are two of the most significant experiences that I will remember in college for the rest of my life.” Singarama opens on Thursday night and has a show on Friday evening and two shows on Saturday. The Thursday night show was pushed back to...
by Jade Spilka | Apr 2, 2019 | Arts and Entertainment, News Slider, Sports
Jade Spilka is a former Lumination staffer now living and working in New York City. She is completing her final semester away and will graduate from Lipscomb in May. The Lipscomb Bisons are making their way to The World’s Most Famous Arena, Madison Square Garden in New York City for NIT semifinals. At least 400 Lipscomb fans are expected to be in New York to support the team this week. With all the options for activities in the city, here are some favorites among locals and frequent tourists: Where to Eat: A Salt & Battery 112 Greenwich Ave., New York, NY 10011 Located in the charming Greenwich Village, A Salt & Battery is a fish and chips shop run by Brits and visited by many Lower Manhattan residents. The affordable spot is considered to be the best fish and chips restaurant in the United States by The Daily Meal. The space, however, does not have a large seating area so it’s best to stick to small groups when planning a trip there. Big Gay Ice Cream 125 East 7th St., New York, NY 10009 207 Front St., New York, NY 10038 61 Grove St., New York, NY 10014 Home to the best soft serve in New York City, Big Gay Ice Cream is a happy and vibrant shop packed with tourists. The Instagramable desserts offered at Big Gay Ice Cream are not only cute, but also extremely well reviewed by critics in the city. If you plan on visiting A Salt & Battery, consider stopping by Big Gay’s nearby Greenwich location for dessert. Ladurée 864 Madison...
by Quinn Gorte | Mar 31, 2019 | Arts and Entertainment, News Slider
Singarama is right around the corner. Students are busy choreographing, rehearsing, writing and directing three separate shows for one of Lipscomb’s biggest annual events. Each of the three individual Singarama productions is directed by Lipscomb students, and this year the directors are seniors Myron Sailors and Amy Hurd and junior Tori Thurmond. While all three directors have performed in Singarama before, this is their first time directing. “It’s been super interesting seeing people come out of the woodwork with their own gifts and talents that they want to put forth towards the show,” said Sailors, a bioscience and philosophy major. Hurd, a marketing major, said she agreed that directing has given her a different perspective on Singarama. “Not just sitting back but being actively engaged in making all of these ideas come to life has been really fun during practices for me,” Hurd said. “It’s awesome to be able to contribute to every single portion.” As directors, Sailors, Hurd and Thurmond are responsible for a range of tasks, including designing a rehearsal timeline and coordinating and communicating with performers. In addition, Sailors said he believes that part of his role includes “a responsibility to try and keep morale up.” “I love Singarama, so I want it to be fun for everybody,” Sailors said. Thurmond, an English major, was on the production team for Singarama last year when she was a sophomore. She said she thinks it’s important to have a range of ages on the team, not just upperclassmen. “I knew that I could carry that on to the next year, and I think it’s very important for there...
