BYU Young Ambassadors head to Nashville

PROVO — For reasons Drew Pope doesn't fully understand, the Nashville Metro Public Schools District is notoriously underfunded when it comes to the arts.

The schools in the massive district struggle for money for basic lighting and sound equipment, much less money to pay for touring groups, workshops and informational, musical or show events.

That's why Pope, director of public affairs for the Nashville, Tenn., LDS Stake, has asked the BYU Young Ambassadors to come to Nashville to put on both a series of workshops and a benefit concert for the Nashville Metro Public Schools Performing Arts.

"I've been a substitute teacher in the district and my wife works for Metro Schools," Pope said. "I wanted to do as much as I could in the way of outreach and providing workshops. I know BYU and the Young Ambassadors group so it's a no-brainer to have them come here."

The Young Ambassadors will perform in concert with local performing groups from McGavock, Hume Fogg and Hillsboro high schools after they teach workshops in dance, acting and vocal performance as well as work with the Hillsboro High School Jazz Band.

Carol Crittenden, visual and performing arts coordinator for Nashville Metro Public Schools, said BYU has a world-class show choir and the district is grateful the performers are willing to share their time and talents with the students.

"There are quite a few groups that come through Nashville looking for a venue in which to perform, but this group is different in the fact that they want to give back to music education programs within MNPS," Crittenden said. "They conduct workshops for our high school show choirs and then ask a couple of them to start their evening concert. After they cover their expenses, any monies collected for tickets left over is donated to the music programs with which they worked. It is a wonderful learning experience for our students."

The Young Ambassadors will perform "Harmony: The Music of Life," on May 4 at 7 p.m. at Hillsboro High School. The stage production features high-energy music and chorography celebrating favorites from some of America’s best-loved musicals like "Carousel," "Dream Girls," "Wicked" and "The Prince of Egypt." The show also highlights hits from artists such as Benny Goodman, Michael Buble and Billy Joel.

The May performance marks the Young Ambassadors’ third visit to Tennessee. The group performed at the 1981 World’s Fair in Nashville, and again during its 1999-2000 touring season.

Since entering the world stage at Japan’s Expo ’70, the Young Ambassadors have gained a reputation for family-friendly entertainment excellence through energetic and heart-warming musical theater entertainment. The ensemble, made up of BYU students, has performed its vibrant blend of song and dance in 56 nations of the world and throughout the United States.

More information on the Young Ambassadors can be found at http://pam.byu.edu/SimilarPage.asp?title=Young%20Ambassadors

Sharon Haddock is a professional freelance writer with 30 years experience, 17 of those at The Deseret News. Her personal blog is at sharonhaddock.blogspot.com.

Email: haddoc@desnews.com