Do you hear the students sing? Acadia grad brings revolution to rural music education in Nova Scotia
Among the casualties of the COVID-19 pandemic were arts programs across the country. Many that had been thriving were massively stripped back or entirely gutted in the catastrophic wake of the pandemic.
As Sarah Walker (B.Mus 鈥�24; B.Ed. student) tells it, the pandemic鈥檚 effect on musicians and performers everywhere was 鈥渄evastating.鈥�
Coming back from the decimation of the arts scene hasn鈥檛 been easy, especially in rural areas where resources were somewhat limited to begin with. But performers and educators everywhere are putting in the work to revitalize it.
According to Dr. Christianne Rushton (Director, School of Music) 鈥淭his is a critical time to rebuild after COVID. Music education needs our help.鈥�
Some heroes wear all black
The call for help in Acadia鈥檚 corner of rural Nova Scotia has been answered by an intrepid three-time Acadia grad with a revolutionary vision and an all-black wardrobe. This February, Lyndsey 鈥淢itch鈥� Mitchell (鈥�12, 鈥�14, 鈥�19), director of the music program at Horton High School, is staging an ambitious multi-institution production of the notoriously challenging musical, Les Mis茅rables.
The musical, celebrating its 40th anniversary this year, is a two and a half-hour show in the French operatic tradition. According to Dr. Rushton, Les Mis is 鈥渙ne of the hardest shows to do.鈥�
鈥淚t takes a very strong person to want to do a show like this,鈥� says Dr. Rushton. 鈥淟es Mis is not a show every high school could do, so it鈥檚 special that Horton is taking it on.鈥�
And while Horton is centre stage in leading the production, they need a strong supporting cast to bring it to life. Lyndsey has called in community members from across the valley to put on a show that she鈥檚 hoping will give a substantial boost to the still-recovering post-pandemic arts scene.
Dr. Rushton says she's pleased that Lyndsey knew to ask "how big of a village do we need?"
She dreamed a dream
When Dr. Rushton heard about Lyndsey鈥檚 plan to put on Les Mis, she was eager for the Acadia School of Music (SOM) get involved.
鈥淲hen we have a community partner out there doing the work, we want to help,鈥� explains Dr. Rushton. 鈥淣ot that Lyndsey needs the help, but when we see someone doing excellent things, we ask, 鈥榟ow can we support, uplift, and honour that?鈥欌��
SOM鈥檚 participation in community projects isn鈥檛 new. 鈥淭his is who we are,鈥� says Dr. Rushton. 鈥淚t鈥檚 mission critical to our values and to what music means to the faculty here at SOM. Building relationships through music is what we鈥檙e all doing, all the time.鈥�
The threads of connection with Acadia run much deeper than the School of Music鈥檚 involvement. From former Acadia students helping with set design, to Dr. Deanne van Rooyen from the Acadia Geology department playing piano and harp in the pit band and Dr. Rushton doing vocal coaching, the whole Acadia village is contributing.
To bring her long-time dream of a multi-institution musical to life, Lyndsey also called on students from Avon View High School and Quick as a Wink Theatre Company. According to Lyndsey, 鈥渢he partnership is a true collaboration.鈥�
Bring her home
When Lyndsey was placed at Horton during her B.Ed. practicum at Acadia, she says it had an 鈥渋ncredibly vibrant鈥� arts program. But, like so many others, it took a hit during COVID. After spending a few years teaching in Grande Prairie, Alberta, Lyndsey got the chance to come back to the Maritimes as the director of Horton鈥檚 music program. Upon her return, she found that even after the pandemic decline, Horton鈥檚 arts programming still had 鈥渟o much potential.鈥� And while they were limited in their ability to put on performances in her first year, once restrictions were lifted, they 鈥渉it the ground running.鈥�
Lyndsey says that a massive factor in the success she鈥檚 had in rebuilding the Horton music program is how supportive the Valley is. 鈥淭he arts community here is so welcoming and easy to be a part of, not to mention the fact that there are so many opportunities for the arts here.鈥�
鈥淲hile we were in the beginning of our growth phase, if I needed instrumental parts covered, I could always count on SOM students to help out in our concerts,鈥� she explains. 鈥淚n fact, for our first show, three of the four musicians we needed for our pit band were Acadia students at that time.鈥�
鈥淚 think that connection to Acadia has been an integral part of our success.鈥�
Not on our own
Sarah Walker, who is not only a B.Ed. student, but also Lyndsey鈥檚 student teacher and the assistant director for Les Mis, has spent her life immersed in the community arts. She鈥檚 seen firsthand how powerful it can be when people come together to put on one heck of a show. 鈥淭he more we all work to collaborate, the easier things can be,鈥� she says. 鈥淏ut it also means you can work on a higher scale, and things end up happening that you never would have thought possible.鈥�
鈥淎 lot of times,鈥� explains Lyndsey, 鈥淚 think people assume that because you are in a rural area, there will be fewer opportunities than if you were in a city, so I'd really like to see us change that narrative. A big way we do that is through collaboration. No matter who you are or what level of learners you're working with, no one can do it all, no matter how hard we try.鈥�
鈥淏igger schools in bigger centres lose out on the possibility to be this deeply integrated and connected because they don鈥檛 have to be,鈥� says Dr. Rushton. 鈥淏ut I think that鈥檚 their loss. We all benefit from collaboration.鈥�
Lyndsey鈥� s students at Horton are aware of the benefits they reap from the collab. Liam Edelstein, who plays Thenardier, reflected that he鈥檚 enjoyed getting feedback on his performance from people with different experiences. 鈥淚t has brought a lot of different perspectives to the way that I approach learning the music, as well as the way I have developed my acting and characterization.鈥�
The diversity of experiences brought to the stage in the production is also showing the students at Horton what is possible for them in the future. Hannah Mainwaring, who is in the ensemble of Les Mis, says, 鈥済etting to see someone like Ms. (Sarah) Walker, who is studying to be a teacher and has experience working as an actress, has opened my eyes to the possibilities that I didn't know I had.鈥�
Solidarity and revolution in harmony
One of the central themes of Les Mis鈥攖he importance of solidarity in revolution鈥攊s beautifully mirrored in this production of the musical. It has taken solidarity and community building to do something as bold, and dare we say revolutionary, as staging Les Mis to help rebuild the arts scene in the valley.
鈥淣ow more than ever we have this underlying gratitude to be able to work together in real time in the same space,鈥� says Sarah. 鈥淚t makes being involved in this collaboration even more special.鈥�
Once the curtain falls for the final time on this production of Les Mis on March 1, the revolution won鈥檛 be over. For Lyndsey, this is just the beginning. 鈥淢aking these connections and finding these opportunities to collaborate will continue to be something we do at Horton Music for years to come.鈥�
Get the Acadia experience with Lyndsey Mitchell
This summer, Lyndsey is co-directing the from July 6-12. Stay tuned for more information later this spring!