Music Students to Perform at Historic Fox Theater

Students and faculty of EWU’s music program will take the stage at the historic Fox Theater in downtown Spokane on Thursday, May 21, to showcase their dynamic, concert-style show: “The Bright Lights of Broadway: The Human Story Behind the Spotlight.”

The Music Program’s annual gala event will feature student performances from a full range of musical genres, from a soft-shoeing saxophone quartet to Queen’s “Bohemian Rhapsody” and songs from the Tony Award-winning musical “Dear Evan Hanson.”

Jody Graves, music program director and professor of piano, says she and her colleagues were inspired to create the annual gala several years ago to give the EWU music students an opportunity to perform at the Fox.

“These students are so incredibly gifted,” Graves says, “we’re also so grateful to our sponsors and donors who are helping to make this happen.”

She says this year’s Broadway theme pulls inspiration from the idea that, at the center of creativity, there is always a beating human heart. “If you pull a thread on any Broadway musical piece,” Graves says, “there’s a story about the human being and the human condition.”

Graves adds that, if the show had a sub-theme, it would be perseverance. Aptly, Perseverance is also the title of an original composition by Duff Grace Overstreet, an undergraduate music composition student who will be one of the many Eagle performers to take the stage at the Fox. Audiences will be treated to an exciting variety of performances, from intimate solos and small ensembles to powerful appearances by EWU’s major ensembles.

The evening will culminate in an all-cast finale, arranged and conducted by Don Goodwin, former director of bands at Eastern. The final number will be a celebration of music that brings each faculty, student and alumni performer back onstage together for a rousing melody in celebration of song, dance and the unforgettable music of Broadway.

“I don’t take it for granted,” Graves says of Eastern’s tight-knit music community, “It’s just like a family. We do this every year and it is nothing but joy. I get to play and teach and work with these young people – and it doesn’t get any better than this.”

The show begins at 7:30 p.m., doors open at 6:15 p.m. Tickets for students and seniors are $12; general admission is $23. VIP ticket packages, which include a pre-concert reception, drink ticket and hors d’oeuvres by Caruso’s Sandwiches and Artisian Pizza, are also available.

Concert sponsors include Carole and Mike Folsom, Jennifer Hicks, Will Simons and Indicana, a Mexican-Indian fusion restaurant in Spokane’s South Perry District.

Information about the show and a link to purchase tickets is available online.