I hope everyone had the very best of holidays and welcomed in our provincial heroes, both the blessed and the secular, and that all our hopes and dreams were fulfilled. ’Tis the season to relax, be a recluse or retreat to the sunnier parts of the globe.
It is always a joy to hear and see the many programs of music given this time of year. The Christmas celebration at St. Bartholomew Catholic Church included the St. Bartholomew Choir, Brass Choir and Children’s Choir, led by director of music ministry Bogdan Minut, the Fairlawn Presbyterian Chancel Choir, led by music director Mirabella Minut, and a few guest singers from the Columbus community.
The music ranged from the “Gadete,” a 14th century Latin carol to familiar music of the season, including songs for the audience to join in singing. On Jan. 16, St. Bartholomew will present the Minut Piano Duo of Mirabella and Bogdan Minut at 7 p.m.
The Columbus Indiana Philharmonic Christmas program, conducted by David Bowden, was absolutely wonderful, as was the Columbus Indiana Children’s Choir, an absolute delight in our midst singing their hearts out under the direction of artistic director Ruth Dwyer.
The lovely Tayler Seymour gave us a little of the fun and charm of Christmas with her rendition of “Santa Baby.” Quite a professional, Seymour is a former Columbus North student, a recipient of the 2015 Brown Vocal Scholarship and attends Ball State University. We have a star in our midst with great stage presence and hope to see lots more of Seymour in the future.
We had an amazing surprise this Christmas when visiting our Walsh family in Minnesota, and that was the gift of tickets to attend a performance of the original play “Cinderella” at the Old Log Theatre. Located in Chanhassen, it has been the starting place of many very talented actors of stage and screen.
I was quite taken with the very beautiful storyline of the play which was presented in its entirety. The play, “The Cinderella Cat,” was originally written by Giambattista Basile in the 17th century — the main source for Charles Perrault’s regal version that we know today.
According to the director’s notes, their version of the classic fairy tale looks a bit deeper into the characters and reveals their true nature and shows that “truth in beauty is not what we see with our eyes only, but with our hearts” so that all can live happily ever after.
The Magazine Club met at the Four Seasons Retirement Center for a lunch hosted by Nan Keach and co-hostesses Tracie Hawes, Julie Kieffer, Ann Knobloch, Pam Lienhoop, Marion Marshall and Judy Rinehart. Following lunch, the club photograph was taken of active members and two former members, Elizabeth Newlin and Wilma Newton.
We were then entertained by the very talented, animated and entertaining Columbus East Center Stage Show Choir, singing a variety of seasonal songs under the direction of Ken Hauan, who does a marvelous job of bringing out the wonderful vocal abilities of this group, including a solo performed by Luke Major. It was Spirit Day and scarves were the attire for the day, with students wearing quite a variety of patterns and colors.
The Shakespeare Club met in December at the home of Sian Goldsmid, with Judy Dewey and Marilyn Harter as co-hostesses. Dessert was quite a treat with homemade individual mincemeat pies and shortbread made by Goldsmid. Each member received a paper toy favor to pull with the help of one seated to their right, which contained hats and toys — a true Christmas tradition.
The program was “Christmas Remembered,” with each member’s recollections shared. A lot of emotions flowed from stories of leaving home, traditions, anticipation of Christmas and the beauty of it all with the weather and snow at times.
