Looking Back on the Sept. 16, 2025 Alexandria A Cappella Collective Chapter Meeting
The final rehearsal before the fall show was at Beth El Synagogue Sept. 16, at 3830 Seminary Rd., in Alexandria. Both ensembles reviewed their songs for the show and the choreo. A riser crew moved the riser set that was on the chapter’s truck to the meeting space at AlexRenew. Both ensembles were able to use the risers to finalize their performances using the risers. Harmonizer music team leaders Tony Colosimo, Jason Lee, Turner Arndt, and Jared Liscinskyworked with that ensemble this week. Metro Voices music team leaders Samantha Tramack, Maggie McAlexander and Tessa Walker worked with that ensemble this week.
(Admin chair, Terry Reynolds, alerts riser crew members that there will be a call this week to move the performance risers from AlexRenew. Stay tuned for that call for help.)
Looking ahead, the AACC Sept. 23 and Sept. 30 meetings prior to the fall Mid Atlantic District (M-AD) contest will be at AlexRenew. On Oct. 7, the AACC chorus will sing in Old Town Alexandria. And It was announced that holiday music was up on Groupanizer so members could get a start on reviewing or learning the songs that have been used in the past for the holiday shows. New holiday songs will be added soon including an arrangement of “Welcome Christmas” for the AACC chorus.
The fall show is Sept. 20 at Bishop Ireton High School, 201 Cambridge Rd., Alexandria, VA 22314, in the 750-aeat auditorium. Theme for the show is “Follow The Song” – a journey through song that defies gravity, crosses oceans and dares the impossible.
Here are call times for the fall show announced recently: riser crew at 1pm; Harmonizer front row at 1:15; Harmonizers on the risers at 1:30 pm, and Metro Voices on the risers at 2:30 pm. For those members new to the venue, there will be dressing room space at the school. Catherine LaValley, fall show producer, thanked the members for stepping up ticket sales again this week, but there are still a large number of tickets to sell. As a reminder, there can be tickets purchased at the door.
Uniform reminder: the plan is to use the formal attire outfits for both the fall show, Sept. 20, and for the district contest, Oct 3-4. Contact Becca Williams if there are questions.
There will be an afterglow following the show at Astro Beer Hall’s Shirlington location, 4001 Campbell Ave. Arlington, VA 22206.
Tessa Walker announced that there are six youth singers signed up for the Capital Force ensemble. She clarified that the music team has determined there needs to be more singers for that ensemble to be formed, so all AACC members need to step up and invite youth singers. It is likely that parents of teens need to be contacted to encourage their children to sign up – so everyone in the AACC needs to speak to friends and family and neighbors to find more singers. Male and female singers should be in 7th to 12th grades.
Terry also reminded all AACC members to submit their responses to the survey sent out via Slack from artistic director, Joe Cerutti – by the end of the day on Wednesday, Sept. 18.
In other recent chapter news, the AACC chorus members sang for three Honor Flights on Sat. Sept. 13 from 7-11 am at Reagan National Airport. The flights arrived from Indianapolis, IN; Syracuse, NY; and Lacrosse, WI. The chorus serenaded arriving veterans from WWI, the Korean War and Vietnam, a few Desert Storm warriors. Each flight had between 40 and 60 veterans along with individual escorts (family members or friends) and members of their local Honor Flight teams.
Associate director, Tony Colosimo, was director for the day and he brought his ten-year-old daughter, Ruth, to sing as well. Singers wore their AACC t-shirts and sang the following songs for the flights: “Armed Forces Medley,” “God Bless America,” “This is My Country,” “America the Beautiful,” and “You’re a Grand Old Flag.” According to the project coordinator, EJ Herold, the chorus will sing for another Honor Flight on November 1 at Reagan.
Membership director, Jacob Broude, welcomed six guests this week, including former active bass, Steve Szkszka and his friend Andy. They are leaders of the Ukrainian Bandurist Chorus of North America and are in DC to receive their ensemble’s National Heritage Foundation Award at the Library of Congress. Assistant director of the Harmonizers, Jason Lee, lead the chapter welcome song.
Rehearsal ended close to 10 pm this week with “Keep the Whole World Singing” directed by Samantha Tramack. Note that the next few rehearsals will also likely run until the 10 pm point as the ensembles continue their preparations for the fall district contest
Until next time – editorjack!
(This message is prepared for your review if you were there, for your information if you had to miss, and as a historical record for the great things going on each week during the 77th year of the Alexandria Chapter. - YeEd)
The Chapter Mission Statement: Enriching lives through vocal harmony in the greater DC area.
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