Everything Nac

The Latin Lumberjacks ensemble at Stephen F. Austin State University will perform an outdoor holiday concert from noon to 1 p.m. Thursday, Dec. 8, in the plaza outside the Baker Pattillo Student Center on the SFA campus.

The Latin Lumberjacks is comprised of members of the Sound Recording Technology program within the SFA School of Music. Directed by Luigi Lazareno, music faculty member, the group will perform a variety of popular holiday songs in salsa style.

The Christmas-themed program will feature colorful, happy salsa sounds that highlight the powerful rhythms of cha-cha-cha, bolero, guaguancó, son montuno, bachata and others performed with congas, bongos, maracas, claves and other Latin music instruments.

“Come join the fun and get in the Christmas spirit,” Lazareno said.

The concert is free. For more information, call the SFA Fine Arts Box Office at (936) 468-6407 or visit www.finearts.sfasu.edu.

High school students from Groveton and Lufkin ISDs recently participated in the Piney Woods Region branch of Texas Area Health Education Center East’s fall 2016 Health Career Camp.

“Most of the participants are first-generation college students, and their questions focused on scholarships, degree requirements and competition for entry into our nursing program,” said Debbie Kiesel with AHEC. “One student even asked what a dean’s job responsibilities entail after listening to Dr. Kimberly Childs, dean of SFA’s College of Sciences and Mathematics. We think the camp went very well!”

Held Nov. 15-17 on the Stephen F. Austin State University Campus, the camp’s goal was to provide aspiring health career students with an opportunity to learn about careers in public health, to shadow professionals who work in several health care facilities, and to learn more about related academic programs and resources available at SFA.

“Our event was educational, not recruiting-oriented, but I think it accomplished both things,” Kiesel said. “I know Dr. Childs’ presentation on the soon-to-be-built Ed and Gwen Cole STEM building, including the architect’s rendering, caused a lot of buzz. Then students toured campus, interacted with faculty and staff members, and tackled a final project to demonstrate that they have the skills to complete a college-level assignment.”

Health professionals will judge student posters created on the final day of the camp during an event in March sponsored by AHEC. Scholarships will be awarded to students whose posters are selected by judges as the most informative and effective.

The Stephen F. Austin State University School of Theatre will present the student-directed, full-length play “Really Really” by Paul Downs Colaizzo at 7:30 p.m. Thursday and Friday, Dec. 1 and 2, and at 2 and 7:30 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 3, in the Downstage Theatre on the SFA campus.

Directed by Longview senior Tanner O’Neal, “Really Really” is a quick-witted contemporary drama that pushes the edges of political correctness and embraces the harsh reality of today’s youth, according to O’Neal. The play takes place at an elite university when the party of the year results in the regret of a lifetime, and a student will stop at nothing to salvage a future that is suddenly slipping away.

The cast features Burleson sophomore Paige Farley as Leigh; Houston junior Haley Gibbs as Grace; San Antonio senior Kevin Holloway-Harris as Johnson; Richmond sophomore Daniel Hicks as Cooper; Houston senior Jason Trevino as Davis; Houston junior Erik Freels-Vargas as Jimmy; and Plano junior Cecily Maucieri as Haley.

The production staff includes Nicole Freyer, Corpus Christi sophomore, stage manager; Zaria Harp, Mesquite sophomore, assistant stage manager; Pedro Dominguez, McAllen senior, assistant director; Brooke McPherson, Leander senior, scenic designer; Chelsea Rodrigue, Maypearl sophomore, costume designer; Travis Wilson, Katy junior, lighting designer; Skyler Moore, Plano junior, sound designer; Danika Pettyjohn, Fort Worth senior, hair and makeup designer; and Taylor Solice, Mesquite senior, properties designer.

The play is recommended for mature audiences. Scott Shattuck is faculty production advisor.

O’Neal is a theatre major minoring in creative writing. He recently directed “Laundry & Bourbon” and was assistant director for “Bloody Bloody Andrew Jackson,” the Festival of New American Plays and “Macbeth.”

Tickets are $6. For tickets or more information, call the SFA Fine Arts Box Office at (936) 468-6407 or visit theatre.sfasu.edu. The Downstage Theatre is located in the Griffith Fine Arts Building, 2222 Alumni Drive.