MLK Weekend: Day One!

On Saturday January 17th, Premier Choir and Young Men’s Ensemble singers gathered at Tremont Temple at 10:00 am to start off the core of MLK weekend. Being at Tremont Temple was a trip down memory lane as BCC used to rehearse there before having BCC central to call home. Singers were excited to rehearse and got off to a great start by working on their solo set before YPC arrived. Around 12:30, the Young People’s Choir of New York City arrived, and all the singers broke for lunch. This gave everyone an opportunity to get to know each other and revisit with old friends (YPC participated in the MLK program in 2007). This was not quite the same as MLK ’07 though, because this year our MLK concert was nationally televised! The pressure was on, so after lunch and a few getting to know you games, BCC and YPC got right to work.


After two long (but fun!) hours of rehearsing, the choir stopped again, this time to engage in the MLK panel discussion. This was an hour long discussion, co facilitated by Isabelle Darling and Casey Accardi, that was intended to remind singers of the reason behind the concert: to celebrate and promote the legacy of Martin Luther King jr. Singers from BCC and YPC represented their choirs as the facilitators asked questions pertaining to their personal involvement in MLK’s legacy. At the end of the discussion, each singer had the opportunity to fill out a letter that would be sent to him or her 6 months later, stating their commitment for the year ahead to work toward positive social change in their communities. All in all, the panel ran smoothly and helped to inspire and remind the singers of the real reason behind the concert. After the panel, the groups had another rehearsal before breaking for the day.

At 6:30 rehearsal finished and each YPC singer was sent home with a BCC host family for an evening of fun and relaxation. Some singers headed home to get to know each other and rest up for the days ahead, while others went out for dinner or attended local performances. Fun was had by all!