Former music dance theatre student Libby Lloyd is spending her summer training with high profile musical theatre professionals at the St. George venue. Libby Lloyd spent months practicing her lines on her own. As an understudy, she hoped to have the opportunity to perform in the role, but never knew when or if that would happen. Then one afternoon she got the call saying she would have to perform that night as Ella in “Cinderella.” Throughout the performance, Lloyd said it was difficult not to get caught up in the emotion and excitement of playing the main role in the show. Instead her job was to “throw emotion out the window and show up and do the work.” However, once she took her bow Lloyd said she finally let herself feel the emotion of the performance. “The whole night was so magical,” said Lloyd. “It was so rewarding knowing I had put in the work of learning and rehearsing on my own and that I was able to keep the show rolling. As I walked down the giant staircase in a beautiful dress at the end of the night, I could finally allow myself to feel the emotion and beauty of the role and reflect on what I had done.” “Cinderella” is one of three plays Lloyd has performed in during her time as a cast member for the Tuacahn Center for the Arts. Lloyd auditioned to be a professional performer for Tuacahn during her last semester at BYU. She had two nights of callbacks, then it was a waiting game. Lloyd was overjoyed when she was asked to be a part of the summer season. “I’m from Utah and I had gone to a couple shows growing up. I knew they had a really good reputation,” said Lloyd. In addition to Cinderella, Lloyd also performs in “The Prince of Egypt” and “Matilda.” Tuacahn is the third venue to ever perform “The Prince of Egypt,” which premiered in Mountain View, California in 2017. The cast was able to work with the show’s composer Stephen Schwartz, an industry legend who composed classics like “Wicked” and wrote the original songs for the DreamWorks movie the musical is based on. “Schwartz was there in our rehearsals helping the musical be everything he intended and imagined it to be,” said Lloyd. Lloyd remembers one rehearsal where Schwartz wanted to rework a song. “To be in the room while he was making the changes and to be a part of that process was really something special,” said Lloyd. Lloyd is also a featured dancer in “The Prince of Egypt,” which means she worked closely with world-renowned choreographer Sean Cheesman, who is known for his work with stars like Michael Jackson and the TV show “So You Think You Can Dance.” Lloyd said one of her favorite experiences of the summer has been dancing Cheesman’s choreography in the opening number of “The Prince of Egypt.” “We’re dancing as the river,” said Lloyd. “We’re the vessel that delivers Moses from his birth mother to his adopted mother. Cheesman is great at getting us to dance with emotion to further the emotions and plot of the story instead of just dancing to dance.” Lloyd said collaborating with Cheesman gave her invaluable insight into professional choreography. “It’s been interesting to see Cheesman’s process and how he works,” said Lloyd. “I was nervous going into it because of how well-known he is in the industry, but he is so kind and wants to put forth a good product just like the rest of us. I’m glad I know him moving forward.” While Lloyd has appreciated Cheesman’s mentorship, the work hasn’t been easy. “He worked us hard,” said Lloyd, as she described grueling days where they would dance for five straight hours and then perform the same night. Despite this, Lloyd said the work was rewarding. Working with Cheesman hasn’t been the only taxing part of Lloyd’s time at Tuacahn. Lloyd said making the jump from collegiate to professional, full-time theatre was a difficult transition. During the Fall 2017 semester, Lloyd was a part of BYU’s production of “Into the Woods.” The cast rehearsed for an entire semester and only performed on a few dates. The opposite is true at Tuacahn. The rehearsal process is short and the cast performs for four to five months. “You have to learn fast and learn the roles correctly because you’re thrown into performing right away,” said Lloyd. “It’s a hard season. It’s really long.” As a cast member, Lloyd doesn’t have a lot of time for rest. Lloyd said one of the hardest things to learn was how to preserve her health during such a long process. “My body hurts, my back is sore. I think I have some bruised ribs. Going full throttle for a few weeks is fine, but with a long contract you realize you have to preserve enough energy to perform and rehearse the next day,” said Lloyd. “You can still give a 100% effort and give the audience the show they deserve to see while maintaining some stamina to get through tomorrow.” Despite a steep learning curve, Lloyd wouldn’t change a thing. She said her time at Tuacahn has been the perfect transition from school to the professional world. Lloyd plans to move to New York City in January to pursue her a career in acting. She believes the connections she made this summer will prove beneficial to her future. “A lot of the cast members are from NYC and are Broadway veterans—this is their passion,” said Lloyd. “Being surrounded by and forming friendships with professionals who have worked in places I aspire to perform has been great as well as learning from them and getting advice for my career path.” Working at Tuacahn has also given Lloyd the confidence to be in show business. “This business is hard; there are a lot of no’s and rejections,” said Lloyd “Everyone here is so talented, but I’m here because I’m talented too. That has been a great realization.”

Film student Isaac Wright shares his experience while studying abroad in England

Living Legends spent three weeks touring Germany and Switzerland. The group has strong ties with Germany, especially.

Dance Student Discovers the Unifying Power of Dance Through Collaborative Research

Design student Megan Matheson had the skills and just needed to put them into practice. Through her summer internship with a noted female photographer, Matheson got first-hand experience discovering how to thrive in the commercial photo industry.

News Media Student Shares Experiences from Study Abroad in Germany

In their recent 'Build it Like Beckham' article, BYU Magazine featured former communications professor and associate dean of The College of Fine Arts and Communications, Raymond E. Beckham. Beckham, who worked at BYU for 42 years and passed away last October, will be recognized at the 2018 BYU Homecoming as the honored founder. To read more click here.

Students See the Business Side of Music in New York Internships

The BYU Barlow Endowment for Music Composition has announced the winner of the Barlow Prize as well as grant recipients for the endowment’s General and LDS Commissioning Programs. Out of 356 submissions from 36 countries, Canadian citizen Tawnie Olson was awarded the $12,000 Barlow Prize to compose a major new work for an unaccompanied SATB Choir. The work will be premiered by the BYU Singers, Seraphic Fire and The Crossing in 2020. Taiwan native Shih-Wei Lo was granted the distinction on Honorable Mention. The judges also granted $80,000 to 13 composers from over 200 applicants to the General and LDS Commissioning Programs. Ethan Wickman, the executive director of the Barlow Endowment, expressed his gratitude for all the composers and ensembles that applied to the competition. “Because of limited resources and keen competition among hundreds of applicants, the Endowment regrets they were unable to fund all worthy projects,” said Wickman. The endowment encourages individuals and ensembles to continue to apply for commissions. Details for the 2019 Barlow competitions will be available on their website and Facebook page in the coming months.

From February through April, the BYU Young Company toured their production of 'Romeo y Julieta' to more than 30 school shows and workshops. Their experience was highlighted in the Summer 2018 Issue of BYU Magazine. To view the KUTV Inside the Story video and read the article, click here.

Earlier this year the BYU Museum of Art (MOA) exhibited “Tiffany Glass: Painting with Color and Light.” The exhibition featured windows and lamps made by Tiffany Studios. Louis C. Tiffany, the company’s founder, revolutionized the way stain glass was made. Tiffany’s glass was used to make some of the twentieth century’s most iconic decorative pieces. To read more about the exhibit and Tiffany in BYU Magazine, click here.

BYU sports fans are used to seeing their heroes on the field or court, but BYU dancers helped athletes experience a whole new world on the dance floor. Ballroom dancers Jai Knighton, Nichole Udall and Brodie Wray teamed up with athletes to compete in a two-part ballroom dance battle competition that aired on BYU Sports Nation as part of “Between the LYnes.” Each ballroom dancer was paired with an athlete and tasked with coming up with a 30-second routine. For the athletes it was their first real experience with ballroom dancing. For the dancers it was a step outside of their normal routine. “Usually I just dance with people who know how to dance,” said Nichole Udall, a member of the Ballroom Dance Team. “It’s fun to work with people who have never danced.” However, teaching people with no prior experience presented a few difficulties. The challenge for Udall was choreographing a routine in the 30 or so minutes they were given. Despite being a dancer, Udall said that her lack of experience choreographing made the task “a little stressful.” However, she said the fact they got to make it fun made it a lot easier. Both Udall and Knighton agreed that despite a lack of formal training, all the athletes involved were up to the task. “My favorite part was seeing how dance made the athletes excited. They were so invested,” said Knighton. “The athletes are already motivated and dedicated people, so it’s easy to work with them,” said Udall. “They get down to business and they’re ready to learn and do well.” Knighton said teaching the athletes was easy once he figured out how they moved naturally. “You would connect the steps to how they move. You wouldn’t want to conform their movements to the dance, instead you fit the routine to them,” he said. For example, basketball player Luke Worthington faked a basketball shot during his routine and football defensive linebacker Corbin Kaufusi worked in a moonwalk. Meanwhile Sabrina Davis, a member of the Women’s Soccer Team, related the samba routine she learned to the salsa music she is used to listening to. “Dance is something everyone can relate to,” said Knighton as he explained why this segment was important. He said that compared to other genres of dance, ballroom hasn’t had a lot of mainstream exposure and for a lot of people it is still ‘“new.” Knighton said even though BYU has one of the best ballroom dance programs in the country, most students here don’t know anything about the team or ballroom dance. “It was a good opportunity for people to be exposed to ballroom dancing,” said Knighton. He hopes this will lead to more people getting involved in it. “Most people know about BYU sports, but often exposure to the arts is minimal,” said Knighton. “Those who want to experience the arts will discover them because they go after it, but this was a good opportunity to mesh something that is really mainstream, like athletics, with the arts.” It turns out meshing dance with other interests is something both Knighton and Udall excel at. They’ve found a way to incorporate their love for dancing into the college experience, despite having completely unrelated majors. Knighton, an exercise science major, said most of the other members of the Ballroom Dance Team are not dance majors either. Luckily, none of them let that stop them from participating in dance. “We each decided that we wanted to have dance be apart of our lives, that it wasn’t just going to be on the side.” “You just do it,” said Knighton. “If you really have a passion and a drive there shouldn’t be anything to stop you. For me, dance is the thing that helps me get away from it all.” Udall said when she started out in the nursing major she was worried she would not be able to balance dance and the demands of her major. She said the key was planning ahead with both her professors and her coaches. “Usually when you have conflicts, it’s either due to not planning well or conflicts you can’t avoid,” said Udall. “However, if you just work with your coaches, directors and teachers ahead of time, it’s attainable.” Both dancers agree that if a student is interested in the arts, they should explore the options BYU provides. “You don’t need to strictly be just one thing,” said Knighton. “If you want to find other things to do outside of your major then you can, BYU has provided so many opportunities to be involved in the arts.” Udall says you just have to go for it. “Always do something that you love,” said Udall.