Freshman Follies is underway this week back in it’s original format after a year of COVID-19. Freshman Follies will hold two live performances Sept. 17-18.
“We are luckily able to go back to our 2019 format,” Courtney McGaha, ACU student productions coordinator and graphic designer, said.
The format of the lip-syncing competition has been around since 2018. However, since it is a freshman oriented show, Student Productions was able to make an easy transition from a COVID based year.
“Since Follies is a freshmen only show there is a possibility that they may not haven’t even seen Follies,” McGaha said. “We haven’t had to say that we are back to normal like we have to with other shows.”
Freshman hall acts are bigger this year due to the new Bullock Hall. Bullock Hall has three hall acts, one of the them including three floors of freshman.
“The students [freshmen] are coming in ready to participate,” McGaha said. “Coming off from their last year of high school and being able to jump in and do something like Follies, they have made the transition pretty well.”
While freshman prepare for their acts, student directors have been meeting every week to prepare not just the acts, but the behind-the-scenes as well. Student directors have helped prepare the PR for Follies as well as the graphics to promote the show.
“Past two and half weeks we have just been preparing for Follies,” Caroline McKnight, student director and junior communications major from Pittsburg, Kansas said.
Student directors work closely with the sophomore and freshmen who are under them to help prepare the acts. McKnight is in charge of helping the individual acts as well.
“I work closely with not just the hall acts but the talents that go in between the hall acts,” McKnight said.
With Pat Boone Theater and Moody Coliseum under construction, this year the Abilene Civic Center will be the home of the performance. Despite the location change, the event still remains general admission and freshman are encouraged to invite their parents to buy tickets.
“I am excited to have students be excited to participate again,” McGaha said. “I am so excited to watch them on stage and just know that it is back and getting back to performing.”
Tickets for Freshman Follies will continue to be on sale until the last performance Saturday morning.
