by Stephanie Schiraldi | Aug 30, 2015 | Arts and Entertainment, News Slider
Kickstarter is the world’s largest funding platform for creative projects, helping dreams like The Arcadian Wild’s first official full-length album come true. The indie-folk group is composed of Lipscomb students Sarah Wood, Everett Davis, Isaac Horn and Lipscomb graduate Lincoln Mick. In February, the group started a Kickstarter campaign to fund their album, surpassing their goal of $9,000 in just 15 days. The group celebrated their new album with a release party in a crowded Shamblin Theatre Saturday night. “We weren’t expecting our Kickstarter to be such a success,” said Wood, a junior music major from Pueblo, Colorado said. “We got emails every single time someone donated and our phones just started blowing up and I would just sit there crying because I just couldn’t believe it.” Rewards for donating to the Kickstarter campaign included Arcadian Wild stickers, signed copies of the new album, an awkward family photo shoot with the band and even a chance to “tame the mane” and cut Horn’s hair. Sophomore Hannah Taylor, a studio art major from Louisville, Kentucky, praised the band for having a great stage presence, making Shamblin a “fun and lively place to be.” “What’s blowing all of our minds is the support from all of the people,” Wood said. “The support that we have is so humbling and amazing.” The album was recorded and produced by Belmont graduate Vian Zaayman, who the group met at a coffee house and gave much praise to during the release party. “Everyone tonight has been saying they can’t believe how much we’ve grown since last year and I think a lot of that growth came out of making...
by Anna McClure | Aug 30, 2015 | Arts and Entertainment, News Slider
Staying true to yourself and your values can be difficult for anyone — a fact addressed at “Live Original LIVE,” hosted by Duck Dynasty’s Sadie Robertson. The event, based around themes of Robertson’s book “Live Original,” was held in Lipscomb University’s Allen Arena on Saturday, Aug. 29 and included inspirational speeches, skits and music performances. “What Live Original is all about, that is what we’re doing tonight, teaching you to go outside of your comfort zone,” Robertson said. “Don’t be afraid, be confident in your schools, through your trials, in the community, in the world, and in your relationships.” Speakers included Robertson’s brother John Luke and sister-in-law Mary Kate, boyfriend Blake Coward, The Bachelor couple Sean and Catherine Lowe, Max and Bonnie Kate Zoghbi, with musical performances by for KING & COUNTRY and Reed Robertson. Amidst the excitement and entertainment were serious and meaningful discussions, such as the Zoghbi’s speaking out about the 2012 Aurora Colorado shooting, which Bonnie Kate was a victim of. “I’m telling you guys this story just to tell of God’s faithfulness and how He’s so good and uses even the darkest things to grow us and shape us,” said Zoghbi, as she spoke of the events of the shooting and the ways in which she has grown afterward. Zoghbi’s filmaker husband Max, who received a lot of attention for his elaborate wedding proposal, spoke about the importance of perspective in living originally in trials and suffering. “For us that looks like finding perspective in your story through suffering because everyone suffers,” he said. “It looks like finding that perspective and relying on God to give you joy...
by Becca Risley | Aug 25, 2015 | Arts and Entertainment, News Slider
Several Lipscomb theatre students were named as 2015 Most Promising Actors for The First Night Honors, an annual celebration of all things theatrical held in Nashville every September. The First Night Honors, styled after the Tony Awards, is a ceremony held for the Nashville theatre community. Every September a gala recognizes the young Most Promising Actors, Star Award Winners and First Night Honorees for their performances and work produced. Lipscomb students selected as Most Promising Actors this year are sophomores MacKenzie Lewis, Rebekah Stogner and Scott Patrick Wilson, junior Bekah Purifoy, and 2015 spring graduates Tyler Russell and Lacy Hartselle. They are joined by 16 other young performers. “Being able to get my name out there in the theatre community in Nashville is great,” Stogner said. “Before this, I only knew of two theaters in the area and this process has opened me up to so much more. This was my first brush with the theatre world of Nashville.” To determine who this season’s young Most Promising Actors would be, Nashville writer, editor and performance art critic Jeffrey Ellis traveled throughout the region seeing several shows and scouting young talent. “If he sees someone, normally younger than 21 or 22, that is impressive to him, he’ll nominate them for the award,” Stogner said. “I was in Picnic earlier this year and I played a teacher. Jeffery directed the show and nominated me because of that.” In addition to performing at the First Night Gala later in September and being recognized at the First Night Preview Party in July, the Most Promising Actors took center stage at The Darkhorse Theatre...
by Erin Turner | Aug 13, 2015 | Arts and Entertainment, News Slider
Christian music artists, fans and community members will return to Music City this fall to unite for the 46th Annual GMA Dove Awards show, “Better Together.” “Since 1969, the GMA Dove Awards has honored the outstanding achievement and excellence of our music community,” GMA executive director Jackie Patillo said in a press release. “We hope to bring much more light to our mission with this year’s ‘Better Together’ theme as we focus on unity, diversity and creativity and come together during this exciting time in our industry.” The awards show will be held under Lipscomb’s roof in Allen Arena for the third consecutive year on Tuesday, Oct. 13. The Gospel Music Association now calls Lipscomb home after holding the awards show in Atlanta. Most may know Nashville as home of country music, but it is now a hub for the Christian music industry as well. On Wednesday, Aug. 12, a press conference was held at which award nominations were announced and Mayor Karl Dean spoke about the importance of music in Nashville’s community. “Not only do we get to celebrate the diversity of the music in Nashville, but we also get to celebrate the fact that hundreds of music fans will be traveling here in October and they will get to see our city firsthand,” Dean said. “Music is one of the top econmic drivers we have. It is the city’s DNA and it is who we are.” Dean described the music industry as Nashville’s “econmic engine,” with 215 million people listening to Christian and Gospel music each month, for example. “Lipscomb, along with other campuses, is a huge part of the boom we’re...
by Leslie Newman | Jul 22, 2015 | Arts and Entertainment, News Slider
Lipscomb’s Cinematic and Theatre Arts programs are working together to create “Drama Major,” a mini-web series that will showcase students both in front of and behind the camera. During a week this summer, students and faculty joined together for long hours in a writer’s room with Dean Batali -known for producing and writing “That ‘70s Show” and “Buffy the Vampire Slayer.” “Dean [Batali] knows so much about writing, I am even learning new things,” said Dave DeBorde, Film and Creative Media professor. During the writing sessions, Batali taught students how to build a good TV series from scratch. “You want to be able to pitch a show to the top of the yellow steno pad,” Batali said. “The shorter the description, the better.” “There is so much more to think about in a TV show than I thought,” graduate film student Josh Link said. “This is such an amazing learning experience.” Batali guided students through structure, noting that each episode is a three or four act play in itself. Students participated in the creating of the play while Batali “worked the writer’s room” by guiding writers to conjectures. “We hope that everyone at Lipscomb will watch the mini-series, and as far as I know, I think it is going to be really good,” said Steve Taylor, Lipscomb’s filmmaker-in-residence. Photo courtesy of Lipscomb...
by Anna McClure | Jul 1, 2015 | Arts and Entertainment, News Slider
Summer Celebration — Lipscomb’s annual lectureship that for more than 85 years has brought thousands of people to Lipscomb for three days of art, music, films and spiritual programming — has returned. Seminars and worship kicked off the event on Wednesday, and all events will continue into Friday evening, when the celebration will come to a close with live music and a fireworks show. “It’s a three-day lectureship series that’s been going on for decades,” administrative assistant for cChurch services Jenna Schrader said. “We have about 110 speakers over the 2 1/2 half days.” The lectureship, which has annually drawn Christians from across the country, has a new theme each year. This year’s theme is “Deployed in an Uncivil War: the Apocalypse of John,” “This year our theme is called Deployed, and it’s talking about Revelation and the Second Coming,” Schrader said. “All of our keynotes are in line with that theme, and then during the day we have breakout classes.” Some of the lecture topics will include “The Apocalyptic Mind of J.R.R. Tolkien,” “Can You be a Gay Christian” and “Jesus vs. Godzilla” as well as more traditional subjects such as textual studies of Revelation. One of the most notable speakers will be Dr. Kent Brantly, the first person to be treated for Ebola in the United States and the first in the world to receive the experimental drug ZMapp. Formerly a medical director for the only Ebola treatment unit in all of Southern Liberia, Brantly now speaks on behalf of Samaritan’s Purse as its medical missions advisor. Another notable person present at this year’s Summer Celebration will be featured artist Rolando Diaz. “[Diaz] is at...
