by Ellen Butterfield | Apr 6, 2017 | Arts and Entertainment, News Slider
Lipscomb’s Theatre department is combining with the Nashville Shakespeare Company to cast an all female cast for a production of Richard II. As a male and self-proclaimed feminist, director Sean Martin finds the dialogue the play creates around the women valuable. “In the past though, at least for me, productions were always overshadowed by a desire to portray Richard as effeminate or inherently weak,” Martin said. “My desire was to get rid of all the imposed stereotypes and to simply let us see the human beings at the story’s core. By doing the play with a female cast, I felt I would be able to achieve that effect. If everyone is feminine then no one could be effeminate.” For those unfamiliar with this rarely referenced Shakespeare play, Richard II is the story of a capricious king, far too concerned with his own finances and arbitrary decisions to consider the emotions of his people. Richard slowly alienates his own subjects, until the common folk welcome a rebellion. “As humans we are all inherently fallible or flawed,” Martin said. “No one is perfect. Richard personifies that in his struggle to know who and what he is. He is a character that we can all relate to.” Martin added that the story of Richard II still provides valuable commentary and lessons for society today, despite its composition in the latter part of the 16th century. “As we explored the script during table work, it actually surprised most of us how relevant this play is today — the overall political themes that it touches on, the power plays, the role of government, taxation, the...
by Savannah Stewart | Apr 6, 2017 | Arts and Entertainment, News Slider
Choreographers for this year’s Singarama show shared their inspiration and efforts towards each dance they have created. “Blast from the Past,” this year’s theme, showcases three groups’ acting, singing and specifically dancing abilities. The groups, “Far Out,” “Totally Awesome” and “Party On,” are lead by a choreography team that creates their dances and then leads them in performances. Each group’s routine is based on a different decade: the 70s, 80s and 90s, respectively. Caitlyn Lloyd, choreographer for “Party On,” was inspired by 90s music videos and tried to emulate those dance moves as best as she could. Lloyd said she was so excited to see her dances come to life. “For them to go from our imagination to being performed on stage is so rewarding,” Lloyd said. “This show is truly a collaborative effort. So many incredible, funny, talented and creative people worked long hours putting this show together.” Choreographer of “Far Out,” Ciara McKinney, said she began the process by getting some help along the way and asking an alumna choreographer of Singarama for some general tips. McKinney feels that her inspiration comes from the music itself. “We try to take one dance at a time,” she said, adding, “collecting as much information about our storyline and incorporate that mood into the dance.” McKinney’s favorite part of this process was bonding with the director of “Far Out,” Meg Mortenson, and her co-choreographer, Katie Markham. “The work that goes into this is way more than I ever could have imagined, and I hope people take advantage of the time they have remaining to enjoy the people and creativity they’re...
by Cole Gray | Apr 5, 2017 | News Slider
Former owner of the New Orleans Hornets George Shinn donated $15 million to Lipscomb, university president Randy Lowry announced at the 2017 Imagine event Monday night. The donation is the largest gift in school history and is earmarked as an investment in the College of Entertainment and the Arts, a new events center and other projects. In a prepared statement, Lowry said the gift marked a significant moment in Lipscomb University history. “We are grateful to George Shinn and his commitment to this institution,” Lowry said. The college will be renamed the Shinn College of Entertainment & the Arts in appreciation for Shinn’s gift. Lipscomb has previously hosted the George Shinn Foundation “Nashville Senior Christmas ShinnDig,” a holiday musical program for Middle Tennessee seniors. Shinn thanked donors for their support of Lipscomb and asked them to continue to give to the university. “When I talk to young people, I like to encourage them that they can do anything with their lives that they want to, just like I’ve been blessed to do with my life,” Shinn said. “If you apply those same principles in reaching out to these young people, in all the things we can do through song and music right here in Music City, then these people can sing out stories of faith — changing people’s lives — and can do that right here from this wonderful university.” A native of Kannapolis, North Carolina, Shinn made his fortune from for-profit trade schools, owning and managing 35 schools after once working as a janitor at Evans Business College. Shinn owned the Hornets NBA team from its creation in...
by LeBron Hill | Apr 4, 2017 | News Slider, Opinion
On March 31, DreamWorks added a 34th 3D animated movie to its collection with Boss Baby. The movie’s theme is centered around the importance of family. Alec Baldwin (30 Rock) plays the Boss Baby, a newborn who works in management of Baby, Inc. He is sent to a family who works for their rival company, Puppy, Inc. to stop the company from releasing a super cuddly and cute puppy that will lower the sales of babies for good. The mother is played by Lisa Kudrow (Friends), and the father is played by Jimmy Kimmel (Jimmy Kimmel Show). The brother of the Boss Baby is reluctant of him and immediately notices that this baby is not like the others. Upon the arrival of the baby, The Templeton’s (Tim, Ted and Janice) were enjoying life, just the three of them. Tim spent most of his time using his imagination, fighting pirates or trying to escape the clutches of up-to-no good villains. His life was great until his parents decided to add another Templeton to the clan. The Boss Baby arrives, and Tim was highly suspicious from the beginning. At first, Tim and Boss Baby are not friends in the slightest. The Boss Baby agrees to leave the family if he accomplishes his mission of stopping Puppy, Inc. from producing their product. It turns out that the CEO of the company was previously a Boss Baby and was pushed aside after he went to a family. He swore his revenge on the baby company for what they did to him. Tim and his little brother succeed in stopping the CEO’s plans of revealing the puppy and...
by Olivia Waldorf | Apr 4, 2017 | News Slider
In Tuesday’s Gathering, Lipscomb’s very own Anna Cannone came to speak about her test of faith. Cannone led by saying, “Learning to clothe yourself in God’s love every day is so important.” She then began to explain how she was called to Lipscomb even though she was set on another school. She refused to get out of the car and tour Lipscomb’s campus with her sister, but eventually she did and immediately felt that it was home, saying that the Holy Spirit was guiding her. Cannone told the audience that at the age of two, she was diagnosed with fibrous dysplasia. This rare bone disease causes fibrous scar-like tissue to develop instead of bone tissue, causing her bones to be weaker than average. “From the age of two on, I knew a lot of sterile white walls and strange doctors,” Cannone said. “My family sacrificed a lot of their life to let me know the love of Jesus.” Cannone remembers being isolated in therapy treatment rooms, lying there, realizing and being able to know that there is a God from a very young age. Cannone says that God gave her the strength to carry through, so she always kept a smile on her face. She was forced to transition from a different school every year, eventually being homeschooled. At the age of seven her dad sat down by her bed and told her that she needed surgery on her eye, or she would go blind. Cannone described what it felt like to know she was going blind at such a young age. She remembered being wheeled down the long corridor to have her first...
by Myckelle Williams | Apr 4, 2017 | News Slider
As part of Welcome to Our Worlds (WOW) week, Dr. Gatluak Thach, President and CEO of the Nashville International Center for Empowerment, was a featured guest speaker in Swang 110 on Tuesday. The event was sponsored by the Office of Intercultural Development, SGA and the African Student Association. Thach spent his presentation discussing “South Sudan Today” and worked to answer the question “Where are the lost boys of Sudan?” “Education is important,” he said. “I was a child who fought war at age six. What we do today will change tomorrow. “Education opens doors. Save yourself and your community; save the country and the world. If I didn’t have the education I have today, I would not be able to do what I am doing.” South Sudenese by nationality, Thach came to America as a refugee over twenty years ago. As a child, he was kidnapped from a camp by a rebel army and forced to be a child soldier for several years. Eventually he escaped camp, along with his younger brother, and fled the region while becoming members of the “Lost Boys of Sudan.” “At one point I almost lost my life,” Thach said. The Lost Boys of Sudan was over 20,000 boys of the Nuer and Dinka ethnic groups who were displaced or orphaned during the Second Sudanese Civil War (1983–2005). Over two million were killed and millions were displaced. The name “Lost Boys of Sudan” was colloquially used by aid workers in the refugee camps where the boys resided in Africa. The term was revived, as children fled the post-independence violence of South Sudan during 2011–2013....
