By Jessica Robison
Moapa Valley Progress
The Moapa Valley High School and Mack Lyon Middle School Choral Department put on a “Remember the 60’s” show on Monday, May 16. Because of budget cuts, this may be the last choir concert for middle and high school students as the program is projected to be cut next year.
To begin the concert, the school’s mixed choir performed. They sang and danced to an arrangement called “Sixties with a Twist”. This medley contained nine songs with hits of the sixties like “Born to be Wild,” “It’s my Party,” and “All You Need is Love.”
Next the Middle School Choir performed a medley called “The Silly Sixties” with a dance routine that the students choreographed themselves. Their performance included samples of songs like “Land of a Thousand Dances,” “The Little Old Lady (From Pasadena),” and “Surfin’ Bird.”
To end the performance, the MVHS Encore choir sang an arrangement called “Summer of ’69.” It included songs such as “Somebody to Love,” “Sweet Caroline,” and “Helplessly Hoping.” The choreography was created by Stephanie Lyon and Kimberly Weiss.
“The kids are fantastic,” Choir teacher KaeLyne Pendleton said. “They give me energy and keep me going.”
Pendleton teaches choir at both the high school and the middle school.
After the performance, awards were given to distinguished students. The Music Achievement Award went to Bailey Owens, Zachery Waite, Zach Waite, Chase Witter, and Taylor Adams. The Director’s Leadership Award was given to Stephanie Lyon and Pace Maughn.
Megan Potter received the National Choir Award. In February, she travelled to New York to participate in the National Honors Concert after auditioning. She spent a week there, doing music workshops all day before performing with an orchestra and choir in Carnegie Hall.
The Scholarship Award was split between Cody Coburn and Mandy May. Pendleton said that she began the Scholarship Award when she took over the choir six years ago. This award goes to the person that excels in the program, works hard, and demonstrates perseverance. The recipient also has to be a high school senior that has been in Encore Choir for over a year. Normally, only one winner is chosen to receive the $200 award; but this year, it was split.
“Mandy performs extremely well despite her handicap and has a beautiful voice,” Pendleton said. “And Cody has helped with fundraising, he works hard, and he has excelled in encore for three years.”
Megan Potter, Cody Coburn, Evalesha Chidester, Brandon Reeves, and Chad Doty were also recognized for being in Encore for the past three years.
“I want to thank the community and the parents for their support,” Pendleton concluded. “I’m very appreciative and I love your children to death.”
