FAMU Connection set at Charles Winter Wood Theatre
Portia Akins | The Famuan
FAMU Connection held its final dress rehearsal Thursday in the Charles Winter Wood Theatre. The audience was informed about several facts ranging from Florida A&M being founded on Oct. 3, 1887 as the State Normal College for Colored Students, to the university being the nation’s top producer of African Americans earning bachelor’s degrees.
The audience was able to realize and relate more by the modern-day music that was used to get the facts across. This fun and upbeat performance was one of many the FAMU Connection showcases.
Before hitting the road, they will first perform at 11 a.m. Saturday in Lee Hall. The organization is then set to perform during the Presidential Recruitment Fair, scheduled to begin on Sept. 26 in Georgia.
As one of the tools for recruitment, prospective students have the opportunity to learn about the legacy and history of the university through music and dancing. Several students from high schools all over the country get the opportunity to experience these talented cast members and to learn about many facts that are not routinely advertised.
Anedra Small is director of FAMU Connection. She said, “Students are constantly saying to me, Connection made them want to come to FAMU. A lot of students have made their final college decision based on a recruitment fair they went to.”
Auditions for FAMU Connection are held in the spring semester and the casting of the show is held the same semester. The week before school begins, there is a week-long boot camp, for five days, 12 hours a day, where cast members are focused on learning the choreography, all of the music and their scripts. One of the goals Small has set is to provide members of FAMU Connection with professional experiences and to train them for what happens in the real world.
“The FAMU Connection gives me the opportunity to express my outrageous and fun energy on stage,” cast member Kyle Hunter said.
Along with being able to express themselves, cast members also learn the ins and outs of stage tasks. Any props seen on stage during the performance, cast members have built and also break down the set, or “strike” as the cast members like to call it.