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HUNTINGTON UNIV MAGAZINE

Students highlight 51st performance of 'Messiah'

FOR RELEASE November 22, 2005

HUNTINGTON, IN—The Huntington University Concert Choir and Orchestra will join forces with the Community Festival Chorus in the 51^st annual Huntington performance of Handel’s “Messiah.”

The public is invited, and there is no admission charge.

The event will be Sunday, December 4, 2005, at 7:30 p.m. at St. Mary’s Catholic Church in Huntington.  Huntington University students Maria Rhodes, soprano; Dana Frick, alto; Chris Betz, tenor; and Rusty Eshleman, bass, will serve as vocal soloists.  Matt Maners will be the conductor for the performance.

• Senior Maria Rhodes is a music performance major from Celina, Ohio.  She has appeared in “The Old Maid and The Thief” as “Laetitia,” “Hansel and Gretel” as “The Witch Who Eats Children,” and “Oklahoma!” as “Virginia.”

• Senior Dana Frick is a music performance major from Kendallville, Ind.  Her appearances include “Miss Todd” in “The Old Maid and The Thief” and “Hansel” in “Hansel and Gretel.”

• Junior Christopher Betz has been seen in “1940s Radio Hour,” “Sure Thing: An Evening of Ives Plays,” “Curious Savage,” “Pippin,” and “Oklahoma!”  He is from Blissfield, Mich., and majors in theatre performance.

  Christopher Betz

• Senior Rusty Eshleman is a contemporary church music major from Saint Thomas, Pa.  He participated in “Cotton Patch Gospel” as a part of a summer theatre troupe from the University.  He also was a vocalist winner in Huntington University’s sixth annual Concerto Competition.

• Matt Maners, a senior music education major from Kokomo, Ind., has appeared in “Good News” and “Return to the Forbidden Planet.”

Huntington University is a comprehensive Christian college of the liberal arts offering graduate and undergraduate programs in more than 70 academic concentrations. U.S.News & World Report ranks Huntington among the best colleges in the Midwest. Founded in 1897 by the Church of the United Brethren in Christ, Huntington University is located on a contemporary, lakeside campus in northeast Indiana. The University is a member of the Council for Christian Colleges and Universities (CCCU) and in 2004 was named one of the 50 best Christian places to work by Christianity Today magazine.

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