College of Fine Arts and Production

There is one overarching factor in how GCU administrators and faculty are judged: Did their students get good jobs after graduation? It is the true meaning behind the University’s “Find your purpose” slogan. “It’s the passion to serve our students that our faculty and staff have,” Provost Dr. Hank Radda said, “which makes them willing to dive in, shepherd and advise students toward their ultimate career goal.”

GCU’s effort to produce cloth face masks has been joined by College of Fine Arts and Production costume designer Nola Yergen, who has recruited several GCU Hotel employees to add pleating. It makes the coverings fit more like traditional hospital masks, but it’s important for an even bigger reason. “This is about teamwork,” Yergen said.

Mykhal Polite was at the starting line to the rest of his life when COVID-19 halted life as we knew it. Not long before he was slated to start a job as a gold rush re-enactor for Alaskan Cruise Lines, the pandemic put the theatre student’s plans on hold. Polite has used the stay-at-home time to work on casting letters and is video auditioning for productions such as a “Power Rangers” reboot.

From remote graduation parties to a graduation ceremony on Zoom to a social-distance-minded graduation dinner al fresco from a parking lot across from a Texas Roadhouse, GCU’s Lopes found a way to celebrate even though they couldn’t be together on campus for Commencement.

For some ground classes, the transition to online seemed as though they were a perfect pair. But for others, instructors had to get a little more creative. That’s exactly what Mark Fearey did when he utilized the GCU Recording Studio to create quality audio for students doing their recitals.

While other students who graduated with a bachelor’s degree in Dance Education went straight into the field, Andrea Pardi chose a different path. She recently became the first GCU graduate to earn a master’s in dance when she finished her degree work at Saint Mary’s College in Moraga, Calif.

A group of seniors in the Dance Department felt blessed to have been at the American College Dance Association’s West Conference when they found out about the cancellation of their final Spring Dance Concert. They got to perform together one last time after being chosen for the conference’s gala. “The seniors in the cast, knowing it was their last performance as members of GCU’s Ethington Dance Ensemble, gave their most heartfelt performances to date. It was a bittersweet moment, to be sure,” said Susannah Keita, Director of the Dance Department.

Spring break wasn’t much of a break for the GCU faculty, which had to transition ground classes to an online environment after the COVID-19 outbreak forced University officials to close much of the campus. But the hard work paid off. Instructors reported a seamless transition on the first day of classes Monday.

It wasn’t the ending they had wanted, but the Ethington Theatre department wasn’t going to let COVID-19 rob them of the opportunity to experience the final production of “The Drowsy Chaperone.” So what did they do? On the final night of rehearsal last week, shortly after receiving the news that all campus events would be canceled for the remainder of the semester, the cast performed what would be their only run-through of the anticipated production right then and there, with no costumes, a half finished set and other production details. It was an experience students won’t soon forget.

In these trying times, it’s important to remember how talented GCU students are. Check out the photos sophomore Rylie Mayo took at the recent Innings Festival in Tempe.