The sound of the final harmony enveloped the room as the song came to a close. For a few seconds after the notes ended, they continued to linger in the air.
The song — “On My Way” from the musical “Violet” — is one that has consumed UNC’s Pauper Performance Troupe for hours this semester, with many rehearsals dedicated to working on that piece alone.
The time commitment that comes with establishing a brand-new performance troupe on a college campus is a challenge that a few dedicated students at UNC are willing to face.
The Pauper Performance Troupe, which focuses on bringing artistic growth and social engagement to the community, is an initiative of UNC’s Pauper Players. By performing musical theatre numbers at nonprofit organizations and campus events, the troupe is providing a new outlet for student performers passionate about the arts.
“It’s a really great way to give back to the community,” said music director Devin Cornacchio. “It’s always so gratifying to see smiles on everyone’s faces when they see us onstage having the time of our lives, singing our favorite tunes.”
The troupe, which was established in spring 2017, performs at several nonprofits all around the Triangle, according to Cornacchio. He said the musical numbers are chosen prior to the start of the semester by the production staff.
Because the group is so new, they have a lot of freedom to experiment with different types of songs, he said. Though they primarily choose numbers from well-known musical theatre composers, such as Stephen Sondheim, they do try to diverge from musicals every once in awhile. Cornacchio said last semester, they performed “Come Together” by The Beatles.
“I went into the group last semester not really having an expansive repertoire of musical theatre,” he said. “I didn’t know that I loved showtunes.”
One of the troupe members, junior Jacob Weinberg, knew that he loved showtunes after being involved in the arts in high school. After a three-year dry spell from performing during college, he recently felt ready to get back into the environment.
“It’s been a crazy dream come true,” Weinberg said. “Everyone was so kind and welcoming that just that alone made me realize, ‘Wow, this is what I’ve been missing.’”
He said being able to perform as a group in the community is a testament to the collective, team aspect of being in the troupe.
“This is a really awesome cross section of people from Carolina,” he said. “There have been a couple times when I have just had a really long, drudgerous, unfortunate day, and the last thing I want to do is spend four hours of prime homework time. But the moment I get into rehearsal, everybody’s happy, everybody’s supportive, everybody’s just honestly glad to be there, and that is just a huge help to me on days when I don’t think I have anything left to give.”
Despite the fact that Paupers Performance Troupe is a new group on campus, it has already garnered attention from those looking for a creative outlet. The troupe currently has 15 members, and auditions for this past semester saw 17 people sign up.
Director Emily Pirozzolo has loved watching the troupe grow. She said she hopes to expand the community outreach far beyond campus by bringing performances to elementary, middle and high schools, particularly ones without established theatre programs.
“I am so passionate about theatre and performing,” she said. “(I) believe that theatre has the power to empower in ways that other things can’t.”
Though the troupe has not been around long, the members in it all have an extremely close bond and look forward to bringing even more positivity into the community as it continues to grow, Cornacchio said.
“The emotions that can be conveyed by music are just absolutely indescribable,” he said. “You just develop this fun relationship with each individual member that you may never have experienced otherwise. And they end up being your best friends by the end of the semester.”
The Pauper Performance Troupe will have their spring showcase Saturday, April 14 at 7:30 p.m. in the Center for Dramatic Art.
@KarenPStahl
