A vocal performance student recently won a scholarship for a full year of tuition from the Wanda L. Bass School of Music.
Hallie Schmidt, vocal performance senior, received an email a few months ago about the Byre Ashley McKenzie scholarship from her voice teacher.
“My voice teacher sent me the information on it while I was at a summer program,” Schmidt said. “He recommended that I apply for it.”
Schmidt said she wrote a 500-word essay and provided two references in order to be considered for the scholarship.
Schmidt said she has had an interest in vocal performance for many years.
“Halfway through high school, I got really interested in opera. And when I started at OCU, I still felt really attached to music theater and wanted to study both,” Schmidt said. “I ended up switching to just vocal performance when I was a sophomore.”
Since first enrolling at OCU, Schmidt has been seen in a number of shows, including The Juniper Tree, The Marriage of Figaro, The Vaudevillian, and Cendrillon.
Schmidt said she enjoyed being in Cendrillon last year.
“It was so kooky and fun. We really got to let loose. I haven’t done a lot of comedy, so it was really exciting,” she said.
In addition to perfoming, Schmidt is involved in a number of different organizations including being the artistic director for OPERAtions. OPERAtions is a student-run opera company that puts on a show once a semester.
OPERAtions had previously stopped functions for a few years, Schmidt said.
“I’m not exactly sure what year it ended, but it wasn’t present when I got here in 2016. And then two grad students got really excited about bringing it back,” she said.
Schmidt has been involved with OPERAtions for two years now.
“It’s been really rewarding and exciting,” she said. “And now I’m the artistic director for it, so it’s been fun to help move that forward.”
Schmidt said she is also the audition coordinator for the School of Theatre.
“I was in work study in the School of Theatre my sophomore year. They created the position at the end of my sophomore year,” she said. “I really like doing that kind of stuff, coordinating things and putting things together, so that seemed like a really exciting opportunity.”
Schmidt said she has some people to thank for her opportunities in the School of Music.
“I definitely thank the entire panel for picking me as the recipient of the scholarship and the deans for being so supportive,” she said. “I thank my teachers, my coaches, everybody.”
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