Review: TCU SENIOR AND ALUMNI SHOWCASE Fills Me With Hometown Pride at 54Below

They say you can't go home again. But sometimes, if you're lucky, home comes to you. I was never a student at Texas Christian University, but Fort Worth, TX. is my hometown. TCU looms large in all my memories of my birthplace. Many of my music lessons and masterclasses were there. Lots of my haunts along Berry St. were also frequented by TCU students. My hometown theatre, Casa Manana was largely staffed with TCU alumni. And most importantly TCU was the home of the Van Cliburn International Piano Competition which I followed sacredly. And if pressed, I would admit to going to more than a few Horned Frogs games.

Last week, it was with great joy that I went to 54 Below to see the TCU Department of Theatre Senior and Alumni Showcase. As about half of the performers were graduating seniors, it isn't really fair to review the evening, but there was so much talent on the stage it is an event that should be noted. These are performers we will definitely be seeing in New York again, and soon.

The evening was hosted by one of TCU's most notable alums, Ben Thompson (Waitress, Matilda, American Idiot) who opened the evening with Maroon Five's "Sunday Morning." He was followed by The evening consisted mostly of duets, the first of which was Annabelle Grace Woodard and Brett Rawlings singing "Fine" from Ordinary Days. Sarah Youngblood and Jacob Clemmons gave us Sweet Charity's "I'm the Bravest Individual." Seniors Kylee Brown and Taylor Bockrath filled "That's Life" with much soul. Married alums Lucy Given and Chandler Benzinger gave us a bit of their real-life romance in "Time Stops" from Big Fish. Seniors Addi Hurst and Sydney Novosad gender-bent "The Bro Song" from Moment By Moment.

Rebecca Carroll and Collins Rush were a two-person pep rally in High School Musical's "Bop to the Top." Martin Hershel and Kamerann Burney veered from musical theatre with "Need You Now." Senior Andrew Nicolas and alum Mattie Parker gave us a wistful "You're Timeless to Me." Hallie Ryan Kaisand and Devan DeLugo rocked through "Breaking the Line" by Joey Contreras. Acting majors Tychelle Bearden, Mikey Mills, Emily Lopez, and Rylee Hach quartered on "Love Is an Open Door" from Frozen.

Ethan Massengale and Savannah Worthington soared on Jason Robert Brown's One Second and a Million Miles." Logan Gray and Louis Mauze bemoaned the fate of "Secondary Characters" from Title of Show. Alums Annie Cahill and Chase Colson gave a great reading go "Grow as we Go." Seniors Jose Ruiz-Gonzalez and Luis Alimonti picked up the pace with Elton John's "Honky Cat." The highlight of the evening was a beautifully arranged version of "Being Alive" featuring Seniors Hannah LeBeau, Arielle Roberts, and D'Mariel. All three dove into the lyrics and found beautiful riffs on Sondheim's themes.

Wyn Delano and Caroline Iliff milked every double entendre from "The Tennis Song" from City of Angels. Ashlee Waldbauer and Taylor Lewis gave us a Spring Awakening medley with "I Don't Do Sadness/Blue Wind. Carly Wheeler, Quinn Moran, Abigail Gardner, and Lance Jewett gave a fine rendition of Stephen Schwartz's "Beautiful City" with Mr. Jewett on guitar. Alum Taylor Quick, who has been entertaining audiences across the country on the Anastasia tour gave a great performance of "Journey to the Past."

The concert ended with a group arrangement on Alanis Morrisette's "You Learn" which seems entirely appropriate for such talented students going from their institution of learning out into the world. Clearly, the program at TCU is doing something right, which makes me very proud of my old hometown.

For more great acts at 54 Below, of to their website, 54below.com.

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