Smyrna Celebrates the Beginning of the Holidays with Annual Tree Lighting

                                                By Jada Ojii

SMYRNA, Tenn. -- The town of Smyrna broke in the holiday season on Nov. 24 with its annual Tree Lighting Ceremony, which featured a jazz band performance, a kids sing-a-long, and an official lighting of the Smyrna Town Centre Christmas tree.

The tree lighting in Smyrna drew well over 100 people to the town’s annual ceremony. Everyone who attended appeared to enjoy themselves, sipping hot cocoa and nibbling cookies offered at the event. The Smyrna High School’s jazz band was the main event, with members of the band performing popular Christmas songs like “Feliz Navidad”, “You’re a Mean One, Mr. Grinch”, and “Santa Claus is Coming to Town”.

Smyrna High School Jazz Band impresses crowd (Photo by Jada Ojii)

The kids sing-a-long called for the children in the room to come to the stage and sing “Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer”, which was very fun and delightful to see. Heather Samson, an employee at the Smyrna Public Library and volunteer at the event, was head of a table that passed out crayons, stickers and Christmas cards to the children there after the performance.

Santa and Mrs. Claus greet kids at Smyrna Tree Lighting Ceremony. (Photo by Jada Ojii)

“It was fun to see the community come out and everyone looked like they had a good time,” said Samson when asked about her experience working at the tree lighting.

The event came to an end with a visit from Mr. and Mrs. Claus in a local fire truck. The children there all cheered for Santa, to which Mr. and Mrs. Claus met with smiles, waving and hugs. For the finale, a five-second countdown was started for the Christmas tree’s lights outside of the Town Centre being turned on. The crowd cheered, and there was an astounding applause as residents of Smyrna and surrounding areas viewed the festive and fully-lit tree.

Fully lit Christmas Tree outside of Smyrna Town Centre. (Photo by Jada Ojii)

Mike Moss, parks and recreation director of Smyrna and MTSU alumnus, worked as the coordinator for the event. He has been working for the town of Smyrna and also helping behind-the-scenes of the annual tree lighting for all of his 20 years at his job.

“We’re lucky,” said Moss.“We get a lot of good people to work with, and those people always step up. I get a lot of volunteers like the high school jazz band and the Spring House Choral Group. They’re always willing to help in the all of the town of Smyrna departments.”

Heather Samson, an employee at the Smyrna Public Library and volunteer at the event, was head of a table that passed out crayons, stickers and Christmas cards to the children there.

“It was fun to see the community come out and everyone looked like they had a good time.” said Samson when asked about her experience working at the tree lighting.

To learn more information about the event, or to check up on when next year’s Tree Lighting Ceremony will take place, visit: http://www.townofsmyrna.org/Home/Components/Calendar/Event/1369/20

###

'My Fair Lady' Charms Murfreesboro Audience

By Sarah Cook

            MURFREESBORO, Tenn. – The Murfreesboro Little Theatre staged the musical “My Fair Lady” on Fridays and Saturdays from Nov. 6-22, charming local audiences with drama and song.

            “My Fair Lady,” with book and lyrics by Alan Jay Lerner and music by Frederick Loewe, is based on George Bernard Shaw’s “Pygmalion” and was directed by Melvin C. Spring and Alex DeHoff. The musical tells how phonetics professor Henry Higgins gives speech lessons to Eliza Doolittle so that she can pass as a lady in high society.

            On a whole, the Murfreesboro Little Theatre staging of “My Fair Lady” was extremely impressive. The actual performance area is in a black box theatre, which allows the stage area to be moved and audience area to be configured in whatever way would best suit the show. Although the set was fairly small, it was incredibly detailed and made in a way that each part could serve multiple functions and act as multiple locations.

“Every show is beautiful,” said audience member Amelia Hunt, who has been attending shows at the theatre for many years. “You never see the same set twice.”

They even went as far as to paint individual cobblestones onto the floor where the sidewalk was.

            Just as detailed as the set were the costumes. Nearly every actor had at least two completely different outfits, many with different hairstyles to match, and every one of them was just as impressive as the last. The men’s suits were fitted, ladies hats matched their dresses, and Eliza’s Embassy Ball gown looked like it was sewn onto her.

“Wardrobe changes can be really stressful, especially when you only have a minute or two to get it done,” actress Mary Hutchens said.

            Hutchens also mentioned that learning to do a British accent was very challenging. Since she was playing Eliza Doolittle, she had to master two different accents.

“The Cockney accent was definitely the hardest,” Hutchens said. “Everyone knows what a regular British accent sounds like, but the Cockney one was like learning another language for me.”

Upcoming shows include “My Three Angels,” which starts showing on Dec. 11, and “The Exonerated", which begins on Jan. 15.

Other members of the cast include

Melvin C. Spring/Alex DeHoff – Directors

Andy Ford – Henry Higgins

Perry Poston – Colonel Pickering

Robert DeHoff – Alfred P. Doolittle

Rae Ellyn Kelley – Mrs. Eynsford-Hill/First Cockney Servant

Zach Kelley – Freddy Eynsford-Hill

Raeley Underwood – Mrs. Higgins Maid/Flower Girl 2

Aylee Gardner – Flower Girl

Heather Gardner – Mrs. Higgins/Mrs. Hopkins

Jacob Knight – Jamie

Janice Denson – Mrs. Pierce

Alyssa Brangenberg – Ensemble

More information about the Murfreesboro Little Theatre can be found at www.mltarts.com.

###

MTSU STUDENT NEWS STATION MAKING REAL-WORLD IMPACT

By Hunter Russell

          MURFREESBORO, Tenn. – Middle Tennessee State University’s student run news station, which is part of the MTSU Center for Media Innovation, is making a real-world impact for the students involved.

          MT10 is MTSU’s completely student-run news station, and it’s getting the results educators strive for. Student after student are finding jobs in their field, and the experience they gained with MT10 is a main reason. The students train using all the same equipment the professionals use. They even produce live newscasts multiple times a week. The newscasts are textbook newscasts, and they feature current, timely local stories from Murfreesboro and the surrounding Middle Tennessee areas. They also have full weather and sports reports during the show.

          There are also job possibilities within MT10 in the Marketing Department. It is a completely self-sustaining operation and a crown jewel of the School of Media and Entertainment at MTSU. Michael Ward is one of the producers for MT10, and he’s soon to be one of the success stories from MT10.

            “The program is very in depth and they have jobs for everything from camera work, to production and even talent on camera,” Ward said.

         Ward will be moving to Michigan after graduation this December and starting his first job as a news producer, directly out of MTSU. Ward was one of the main producers for the live MT10 newscasts that air Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday nights. The show airs live at 6:30 p.m. on Channel 10 on Comcast in Murfreesboro, and worldwide on a live stream on their website, www.mt10news.com. The stream is completely free and works best with a high-speed Internet connection.

          Ward was responsible for making sure every aspect of the newscast was in order. Starting hours before show time, Ward and the other producers prepared scripts, checked equipment, and prepped the talent. He even made sure to check run times for the evening’s programming. They have to abide by FCC rules and stay on time. Ward is very proud of the program and all that he and MT10 have accomplished.

            With another successful student jumping from the college ranks directly into the multimedia journalism field, MTSU’S claim to have the best mass communication college only grows stronger.

            “MT10 taught me so much,” Ward said. “I just feel like it’s a major part of where I am today.”

           Many former success stories from the school line the walls of the John Bragg Communication Building, and perhaps another plaque isn’t too far away.

###

Jonny Grande Headlines On Campus Show

By Cathryne Clain

MURFEESBORO, Tenn.- Middle Tennessee State University held a show in its own Tucker Theatre on Nov. 23, with performances by upcoming artists including Clay Cages and Jonny Grande.

In exchange for tickets, attendants were asked to bring a can of food for donation or their MTSU I.D. for free admission.

            The artist’s performances were accented with bright stage lights, high- energy music, and a passionate crowd of 40 people or more. Most attendants sang along with the artists and demonstrated their dedication.  Although these artists are not well established yet, it was clear to everyone in the audience that they are not far from success.

Jonny Grande Photo by Cathryne Clain

            The artist’s management team, who coordinated with MTSU’s Recording Industry Department, organized the performance.  Professor Frank Baird was the director of the event.

            “This event is not only fun for people to watch, but it’s also a great opportunity for our own to showcase their talent,” said Baird.

The headliner for the show was Dub Step artist and DJ Jonny Grande. The opening act was a Punk Rock band called Clay Cages.

Grande is a Producing and Engineering major at MTSU and currently working on producing music for artists in Nashville. Later this fall, Grande will release his new EP, “Suspended.” Grande will be traveling through December to parts of Tennessee and Colorado on tour with his latest album.

Clay Cages is a Nashville native band formed in 2013. They are busy promoting their new music and getting ready to release their new EP, “ The Lenses We See Life Through,” later this fall.

Both artists are active on social media where they encourage fans to keep up with their upcoming events and new music. You can find information about Grande at http://www.jonnygrande.com. For information on Clay Cages, go to their Facebook page under “Clay Cages.”

# # #