What are your major/minor(s) and your year?
I am a senior graduating in May, with degrees in public relations, French and francophone studies, and global and international studies.

How are you involved in PAC, and how long have you been involved?
I am the a cappella/voice genre marshal for PAC, and I have been involved since the beginning of this year! I have been lucky enough to see PAC grow so quickly and it has been one amazing journey.


What other performing arts groups are you involved in on campus?
I am the president of The Coda Conduct, and also have been involved in MasquerAIDS in the past. I love to support other groups by collaborating with them and attending their performances.

What is your favorite thing about PAC?
The people. Every single person I have met through PAC are such vibrant personalities who are intensely passionate about the arts. I love that.

If you had to describe your performing arts experience at Penn State in one word, what would it be?
Breathtaking.

What is your signature karaoke song?
It depends on the setting, but embarrassingly enough, I used to sing Britney Spears songs. Now, I try to stick with Adele.

What is your favorite arts experience?
I absolutely loved organizing and performing in the A Cappella Sampler this year. We were awarded with the Outstanding Collaborative Program of the year by Student Affairs, and I think it speaks to the dedication of PAC as well as the amazing talent within the a cappella community. Penn State has a thriving a cappella community and I feel lucky to have served as a representative this year!

By Paul Kane

Stressed out?  Webster's Café and Bookstore - a staple in the State College arts and small business scene - is hosting another one of their famous open mics, tonight from 7:00 to 9:00 PM!  This event, sponsored by CAPS, aims to reduce stress, to give members of the community an opportunity to play and listen to music, to find out more about CAPS' counseling and mental health services, and of course, to have a good time.

Webster's is located underground, at 128 South Allen St.  There will be two microphones, two guitar rigs, a keyboard, and ten minutes for each group to shine.  Be advised that performers must RSVP, and may do so with this Google doc.

Still have questions?  Contact Hunter Davey at hbd5053@psu.edu

By Paul Kane

Here we are, everyone.  We’re officially two weeks away spring finals.  You’re no stranger to this part of the semester, and that beautiful sunset behind a laptop full of papers and exam materials serves as a reminder of exactly how torturous this time of year can be. Here at PAC, we’re no strangers to the stress and pressure that spring brings, and we’ve decided that there’s no better time than now for some entertainment.
 
On Thursday, April 28th, at 7:30 PM in Schwab Auditorium, the Performing Arts Council invites you to attend Making an Impact - our first annual performing arts showcase.  Without giving away too much about the program, expect to see stunning performances from high-profile institutions like RAM Squad and The Penn State Thespians, alongside intense, intimate acts by some of Penn State’s more niche performers like W.O.R.D.S. and Penn State Taiko.  In addition to these individual performances, there will be a number of never-before-seen collaborations between several of our university’s performance groups. For an added bonus, come see Mike the Mailman make an appearance as one of our many guest emcees!
 
Having booked sixteen acts, our showcase will be the largest and most diverse performing arts collaboration to ever occur at Penn State.  Admission is free, and tickets will be available in the HUB from April 26 to the 28. If you’re stuck inside, you can get them online here. 
 
This will be the final performance of the year for many of Penn State’s favorite entertainers, and for the many seniors in the showcase, their last performance ever. Seize this opportunity while you can.  Come support Penn State’s vivacious arts community and witness this unforgettable event!

By Paul Kane

This coming Sunday, April 17 at 4 PM, the Penn State Concert Choir will perform their Annual Spring Concert in Esber Recital Hall, Music Building I.  Student tickets are $2, and general admission is $4.99.  Having just returned from their Canadian Tour and their performance at the PMEA State Conference the Concert Choir will perform a program featuring pieces by noteworthy and diverse composers such as Josef Rheinberger, Maurice Ravel, and Alberto Ginastera.
 
But if I’m being realistic, most people would pass over this event without batting an eyelash. 
 
For many, the words “classical music” carry a particular connotation of stuffiness and antiquity.  Over the past 30 to 40 years, educators and students alike have experienced classical music as - in the words of retired Metropolitan Opera Violinist Les Dreyer - “the aural equivalent of “eating your vegetables.”  It's true.  Classical music suffers from an abundance of old masterworks.  So much so that performance resembles a museum, not a concert.  It’s dismaying, but we’ve failed to consider the extremely important idea that music can be more than entertainment.
 
Allow me to defend myself for a moment, though.  I don’t want this post to be misconstrued as a polemic against modern music.  If you’re reading this, there’s a good chance that, like me, you are between the ages of 18 and 25.  I’d venture to say that you and I listen to some very similar music.  What’s more, I’ll be the first to say that Classical music can be extremely dense and esoteric.  I openly profess that, as a non-music major, I will never appreciate or understand classical music to the depth and breadth that some do.  But that shouldn’t stop me, or anyone else, from listening to and participating in the beautiful tradition.

Classical and contemporary music both have melody, harmony, and rhythm, of course.  But in the hands of a master – someone who has spent their life studying the mind’s response to these three components – something more meaningful happens.  Intricate and complex patterns and combinations of the three emerge, and provoke an intellectual, emotional, and physical engagement that other music cannot.  Classical music may suffer from an antiquated reputation, but it has not been dead for the past two hundred years as we are implicitly taught.  There is a great deal of modern repertoire - classical music that has been composed even during our own lifetimes - that lives in the shadow of Beethoven, Mozart, Bach, and company, despite its own unique beauty.
 
The Penn State Concert Choir prides itself on providing a dynamic and relatable experience of classical music to those who are open to it.  As a member of the choir, and a proponent of artistic diversity, I highly suggest that you take advantage of this opportunity, whatever your understanding of classical music may be.  As a university student, there is no other point your life that you will be surrounded by so much opportunity to experience the arts.  If you like it, that's wonderful.  If you don't, at least you can say that you've given it a fair chance.  But, as an enticement you can view the choir's performance of Johannes Brahms' "Liebeslieder Walzer" from last semester here.  This lush collection of love poems arranged for double choir and piano illustrates the highest highs and lowest lows experienced by the love-stricken soul. The collection is in German, but the message is universal.

What are your major/minor(s) and your year?
Senior: Major- Chemical Engineering
 
How are you involved in PAC, and how long have you been involved?
I am the Writing Genre Marshall for PAC.  I’ve been involved in PAC since the very beginning.
 
What other performing arts groups are you involved in on campus?
I am the President of Open Music Inspirations Concepts, and a general body member of Writers Organized to Represent Diverse Stories
 
What is your favorite thing about PAC?
The fact that we have the freedom to do almost anything we want performance wise, and as a performing arts organization.
 
If you had to describe your performing arts experience at Penn State in one word, what would it be?
Serendipity
 
What is your signature karaoke song?
"Everlong" by Foo Fighters
 
What is your favorite arts experience?
Being the Nittany Block Party Emcee