Grand Canyon University

The Theater Department works hard to provide the best opportunities they can for their students. One of those opportunities was in the form of a workshop that took place over spring break to allow students to learn how to prepare for a professional audition outside of GCU. Robert Kolby Harper lead the workshop and helped students get a better understanding of how to feel more comfortable in an audition setting, as well as letting them know that it is ok to be yourself in an audition. “The biggest thing I take away from everything I’ve seen in what we’re doing here is just to be ourselves and try and shed the performance skin that we’ve all been built up to over the years,” said COFAP student Mykhal Polite.

The premier of “Godspell” hits Ethington Theatre tonight, and offers a colorful musical experience, that showcases a modern interpretation of the book of Matthew. The music, composed by Stephen Swartz of Pippin and Wicked fame, provides a unique take on the stories, integrating forms of rock with adapted hymns. “We are singing the word of God and passages from the bible because we just feel an immense amount of joy about it and I feel like that’s what makes music in this show different than other shows,” cast member Charlotte Perkis said. The show will be performed March 22-24 and March 29-31. Friday and Saturday Shows begin at 7:30 p.m., while Sunday shows begin at 2 p.m.

For the seventh year in a row, the Dance Department has successfully had a piece selected to be featured in the American College Dance Association’s West Region gala. Three pieces of choreography were chosen for the weeklong conference, and Madison Knutson’s “The Sun Will Rise, and We Will Too” was among the 10 featured works in the gala. “I think it’s a testament to the strength of our program, which is still under 10 years old,” said Susannah Keita, Director of Dance.

The College of Science, Engineering and Technology’s Forensic Science Department has done it again, this time with the addition of some new booths at Forensic Science Day on Tuesday. The forensic odontology booth showed the visiting high school students how to use bite marks to solve a crime, and there also were new fingerprinting and impression-evidence booths. The visitors also watched a live police dog demo, met with the Phoenix Police Department’s Special Assignment Unit and heard from guest speakers in the field.

Hagir Elsheikh, one of five inductees into the GCU Hall of Fame on Saturday, is a domestic violence activist and TV and radio talk show host in Pennsylvania and has founded a staffing agency and a nonprofit that helps victims of violence. But long before she accomplished any of that, she had to flee the political violence in Sudan and survive domestic violence in her own life. She was an online nursing student before getting her degree in 2012, and she visit campus for the first time Saturday.

The recent Honors College Leadership Conference helped those students build connections with business professionals and better prepare themselves for the future. “I think it was a great opportunity to meet established individuals in the various fields, whether it be business or different markets of leadership, but also meeting other motivated individuals that are students as well,” Honors student Elisha Fronda said.

A mid-February trip to New York gave 11 Honors College students the opportunity to meet other young adults from around the world and discuss world issues. They also got to see some of the city’s most iconic destinations. “It was a very incredible experience. It was worth it,” Sara Cordero said. “It was just a really great opportunity to just listen to professionals all over the world and how they all tackle these humanitarian issues.”

Bill Symington, Assistant Dean of the College of Fine Arts and Production, continues to work vigorously on projects outside the University to help build bridges that lead students to jobs in the entertainment industry. Symington has judged for the Kennedy Center, has designed a show for TheaterWorks! and even has helped establish the “Backstage Pass” program with the AriZoni Board of Directors. The program connects students to professionals in the business to help inform them about the business and teach them what employers are looking for.

The Band in the Stands program invites high school bands to come to campus and receive instruction from the Thundering Heard Pep Band, then perform alongside the Thundering Heard at a GCU game. The band from King’s Way Christian Schools in Vancouver, Wash., visited recently, and the group’s instructor, Marge Swearer, called it a “uniquely wonderful experience.”

The annual Valentine’s Day dinner in the Student Union drew its largest turnout ever Thursday night. Students were treated to a six-course meal of roasted New York strip steak, garlic shrimp, broccolini, baked potato, bread rolls followed by a chocolate dessert.