Lipscomb theatre department brings Shakespeare to new light

Lipscomb theatre department brings Shakespeare to new light

A mix of vomit, cross-dressing, football, rap and much more bring all 37 of Shakespeare’s plays to life as the Lipscomb Theatre Department puts on The Compleat Wrks of Wllm Shkspr (Abridged).  “That’s just act one,” director Nat McIntyre said. “By enjoying the insane ridiculousness of this show, I think it honors Shakespeare much more than many straight-up Shakespeare productions.” The show follows five actors who weave their way through all of Shakespeare’s comedies, histories and tragedies in 97 minutes. The actors work together as narrators and characters to tell each Shakespearean story. Featured in the show are freshman theatre majors Jacob Friend and Anna Elizabeth Micksch, junior theatre majors Ann-Marie Bagge and Nelson Tilley and senior acting major Andrew Johnson. McIntyre has worked with the actors to connect the words of the show to the students on campus. “Some of the jokes have been updated just for the university,” Johnson said. “We’ve been updating the show to help it feel more topical.” Compleat Wrks was London’s longest-running comedy and spent nine years headlining at London’s West End. The show has since been performed several times in the United States and is a first for Lipscomb. “It’s a really good show for Lipscomb because it’s different than what we normally do,” Johnson said. “It’s extremely light-hearted and up-to-date. It’ll make people laugh for sure.” The play will be performed Sept. 18-20 and 25-27 at 7:30 p.m. in Flatt Amphitheater. Tickets for The Compleat Wrks of Wllm Shkspr (Abridged) can be purchased either in the box office on campus, online, or at the door. Cost is $17 for individuals, $12 for faculty and staff and $5 for...
OPEN gallery features local, national artists

OPEN gallery features local, national artists

On the first Saturday of every month, galleries around Nashville are abuzz for the Art Crawl — one of them being Lipscomb’s own OPEN gallery, located in the Arcade off of Fifth Avenue. Students from Lipscomb’s Visual Arts Department have managed the gallery for the past three years. Junior studio art major Cori McGuirk is the head curator of the gallery this year. Her job involves researching and contacting artists about showing their work in the gallery. “I think they [the department] just wanted the students to be able to have a chance outside of their schoolwork here to connect with other artists,” McGuirk said in explaining the purpose of the gallery. She said that with the gallery, the students will “kind of get a feel for what it’s like to be an artist, and create work.” With free range of choosing the featured artist, McGuirk and other students have the opportunity to connect with other artists. “They [the artists] can be from anywhere, be any age, have any medium,” McGuirk said. “It’s really nice to have that freedom.” McGuirk primarily focuses on showing artists that are in her age group, often from nearby art schools such as Watkins School of Design or Belmont University. “It can be discouraging wanting to be an artist at this age,” McGuirk said. “It’s cool to find these younger artists who I can relate with more, and I feel like they’re doing all these really cool things and I feel like I can do it, too.” Along with local and national artists, OPEN annually features work by senior art majors at Lipscomb, as well as the...
RAINEY emerges on Lipscomb music scene

RAINEY emerges on Lipscomb music scene

Lipscomb is home to a wide range of musically talented students such as The Arcadian Wild and Abbi Scott; newly formed band RAINEY has joined the mix. The band first appeared at the Black & White dinner this August and also played at SAB’s first block party in the square. The indie-rock pop group formed in May 2015 by several Lipscomb students. RAINEY is composed of senior business entrepreneurship major Lana Rainey from Temecula, California, junior youth ministry major Trevor Ault from Denver, Colorado, junior history major Landon Woods from Southeast Missouri and junior biomedical physics major Benjamin Siebold from Denver, Colorado. Senior accounting major Hadley Kelsey from Madison, Mississippi is their manager. Rainey joined Ault, Siebold and Woods after recording a solo EP which debuted on Nashville radio station Lightning 100. She met Woods while studying abroad in Vienna, but Ault said the three boys had already been playing together in their dorm for a semester. “We started writing songs and playing music together,” Ault said. “Then we decided we were going to do a coffeehouse at the end of the year. Landon was going to sing, but then we were like we could actually get a singer so we practiced with Lana two or three times.” Though the band identifies as an indie-rock pop group, each member brings their own unique style. “We all have different influences,” Ault said. “We all want to sound like something different and it just comes out sounding like us.” Ault said his influences include Two Door Cinema Club and Bombay Bicycle Club. Rainey’s influences include Sylvan Esso, Arctic Monkeys and Kings of Leon....
Lipscomb brings third annual Justice Film Festival to Nashville

Lipscomb brings third annual Justice Film Festival to Nashville

For millions of the world’s poorest people, violence is an urgent and everyday threat. For the International Justice Mission (IJM), it is the reason hundreds of lawyers, investigators, social workers, community activists and other professionals gather in nearly 20 developing communities worldwide. IJM partnered with Lipscomb University, HumanDocs and Different Drummer to bring the third annual Justice Film Festival to Nashville Sept. 11-12. The festival featured films from well-known and emerging filmmakers who move to inspire the community and live out justice in a broken world. Offices for IJM are located in Africa, Latin America, South and Southeast Asia. The poor in these communities are particularly vulnerable because their justice systems – the police, the courts and the laws – don’t protect them from violence. “Four billion people worldwide live outside the law,” IJM director of mobilization Wayne Barnard said. “That is, 4 billion people live in a context where there is no 911. And if there were a 911 and you dialed it, no one would answer.” IJM operates under four main goals: rescuing victims, restoring survivors, bringing criminals to justice and strengthening the justice systems. “For poor people in the developing world, violence is relentless so we’re committed to being even more relentless,” Barnard said. “We rescue individuals one by one. That’s where our work starts, but that’s not where it ends.” The mission was born as an idea in 1995 when founder Gary Haugen returned from leading an investigation of the Rwanda Genocide. “Gary was working at that time with the U.S. Department of Justice and he was challenged by the reality of injustice in the...
Fashion department hosts Italian fashion exhibit

Fashion department hosts Italian fashion exhibit

Italian fashion has always been highly respected in the fashion world. After all, some of the world’s most sought-after designers come from Italy, including Dolce and Gabbana, Armani and Gucci. Because of its importance, Lipscomb University’s fashion department decided to highlight the culture by hosting an Italian fashion exhibit in Beaman Library. Rustic gold frames with black and white pictures serve as a backdrop for the event so visitors can see the evolution of Italian fashion.  Mannequins are clothed in tailored, elegant outfits that were designed and made in Italy. “We were inspired by the Frist Center, which has been hosting an Italian fashion exhibit,”said junior Becca Dean, an entrepreneurship and fashion merchandising major from Findlay, Ohio. “We decided to put our own spin on the idea.” Clothing stores from Green Hills including Gus Meyer and The Oxford Shop were able to lend pieces such as dresses, menswear and outerwear for the display. “Italian fashion has amazing quality,” said junior Sydney Carpenter, a fashion merchandising major from Brownstown, Michigan. “Designers use rich fabrics like suede and leather, which makes their clothing stand out from others.” One piece in particular embodies the essence of Italian fashion—a jacket from designer Nikky. “The basting stitch, which is often removed from clothing, is left in the side vents,” Dean said. “This method is very much Italian style. It serves as the designer’s trademark.” Other stand-out pieces from the exhibit include a tie made of fine Italian silk, a linen pocket square and even a cape that was purchased in Italy by a fashion student. Quality is an important factor in Italian fashion and craftsmanship is also key. “I would like students...
Shakespeare in the Park provides free entertainment

Shakespeare in the Park provides free entertainment

Set during the Civil War, the Nashville Shakespeare Festival’s production of “Henry V” spins the classic historical drama in a new way. At the top of the show, the stage is set with a burned down farmhouse occupied by soldiers, nurses and owners of the farm. One returning Union soldier joins his Confederate brother on stage while the owner of the house and a slave woman sit to the side with a copy of “Henry V.” “The owner of the house and the slave begin to read from the book and those of us in the camp have to decide when we play along and why,” senior acting major Brooke Ferguson said. “It’s such a cool idea.” The director of the show, Nat McIntyre, felt that the state of Tennessee during the Civil War was split down the middle between the Confederate soldiers and the Union. His artistic decision to tell this story as part of the Civil War era was his way of bringing a divided family, and thus a divided state, together. “I love the direction that Nat took the play by setting it in the Civil War, while not having the actual events of the play happen during the War,” senior acting/directing major Jonah Jackson said. “I think it is a great way to frame this story that is ultimately about the hope for peace and reconciliation.” Lipscomb students involved with the show include Ferguson, Jackson and senior acting major Scout Pittman. Jackson plays John Bates, an English soldier and The French Duke of Bourbon. Pittman portrays Katherine, the French princess and Ferguson plays Bishop No....