University of Mississippi - Ole Miss Yearbook (Oxford, MS)

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JL ■.a With a star studded Erft 1 L - H 1 audience, Ole Miss w ■ ' C K 1 students preform a 1 ' 1 scene from West Side 1 Hfik Ql ' 1 Story as a part of 1 T 41 K their Showstoppers 1 ■ 1 routine. J 1 1 Senior music fa V I education major Sean ? yg ML Sykes performs a fl rw part in a Gershwin r II medley. Pfc li k Actor Gerald -— r- IC VMM fcydT McRaney. best known ■ ■r - m k s - for his role in Major k yr . ' Dad. performs a f - piece from Tennessee J F Williams ' The Glass E i .Ji 1 ' r J Menagerie. p , photos by Robin Freema celebrating the arts and entertainment With the opening of the Gertrude Ford Center for Performing Arts came one of the biggest parties in Ole Miss history. ZzlstueJent life

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look of me °World by Lindsay Nash| While the Ole Miss Grove has long-set Southern traditions of playing host to tailgating, concerts and beautiful afternoon picnics, it was also home to the fifth annual WorldFest, attracting international students, faculty and local residents to display their cultures. WorldFest 2003, presented by the Office of International Programming and sponsored by the Croft Institute for International Studies and the Ole Miss Parents Association, represented more than 70 different cultures through song, dance, food and games. The April 15 event kicked off with a procession of flags from more than 70 countries, beginning with Argentina and | ending with Yemen, followed by WorldGames and WorldStage. The games included more than 15 international sports and games. Newly hired basketball coach Carol Ross opened the games with sports ranging from soccer, badminton and croquet, to lesser-known activities such as cricket and ratanball. WorldStage showcased cultural songs, dances, performances and fashion shows. The Ole Miss Steel Drum Ensemble and Seven Plague Prophecy performed popular songs, and 8-year-old Sukanya Sapre from Oxford performed a contemporary Indian dance. Charles Washington, a sophomore from Oxford, attended ' WorldFest to learn more about a culture different from his own. Ole Miss has such a large international student population land I feel that we normally do not interact that much, |washington said. This gives us the chance. Between WorldGames and WorldStage, a food festival was Iheld featuring various native foods prepared by faculty and students. The food festival included everything from sticky rice |from Laos to sushi from Japan. Mounirah Alazeib, a graduate student from Yemen, [volunteered to write students ' names in Arabic. I went out jthere to mix with different cultures and learn more about Ithem, said Alazeib, who has only been in the United States |since January. I wanted to get out and meet new people. With over 1,000 people in attendance, WorldFest 2003 ' successfully showcased the atmosphere of diversity that is Ivalued at Ole Miss. Through dance and fashion, many students showed their cultural traditions. To begin the WorldFest activities, children paraded flags from around the world down the Walk of Champions. worldfestl 21

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by Nathan Geddie The opening of the state of the art Gertrude Castellow Ford Center for the Performing Arts came with a rather impressive attendee list to its inaugural gala. On March 29, 2003, the red carpet was rolled out at 100 University Avenue for a grand opening comparing to no other on the Ole Miss campus. Such stars as Morgan Freeman, Broadway star Laurie Gaily Stephenson and actor Gerald McRaney graced the audience with their talent. Along with the big Hollywood names, Ole Miss performers brought the crowd out of their seats. Ole Miss singing groups Blue Ten Harmony and Perfect Fourth sang. Perfect Fourth sang a medley from O Brother, Where Art Thou?. Showstopers, another Ole Miss performing group, stole the stage with their rendition of a scene from IVesr Side Story. Ole Miss alum Sam Haskel was the executive producer of the inaugural gala. Actor Freeman was the Master of Ceremonies. Although Freeman has stared in a number of movies and been nominated for three Academy Awards, Freeman was nervous about hosting the event. With the new performing arts center opening its doors, many new opportunities were created for Ole Miss students to show their talent and bring more talent to the Ole Miss campus. The 88,000 square foot multi-event hall which seats approximately 1,200 patrons was designed for a variety of performances from lecture and small chamber music to full scale symphonic performances. The building offers state of the art computer controlled theatrical lighting systems, a fully operational orchestra pit and lift to accommodate 50 musicians and 2,800 square foot rehearsal or reception hall room. The center was funded through the Gertude C. Ford Foundation and the Mississippi Legislature. In order to begin the first phase of construction in May 2000, a $20 million gift was given to Ole Miss by the Jackson based Gertude C. Ford Foundation in 1998. The Mississippi Legislature also donated $10 million for the facility and $500,000 for the planning of the rather large project. Subsequent gifts from the Ford Foundation enabled the University to purchase the land that the building sits on and the 500 plus parking spaces beside it. Being completed in December 2002, the Ford Center helps create a bond with the University of Mississippi and the public through the performing arts.