After Eight Update

by Claire Gober '12, After Eight Musical Director 2010-2011

The beginning of spring semester was a frightening time for After Eight. We had to temporarily part with four members of our group who were studying abroad for the semester, and we were very uncertain of how we could make it through the semester without their animated personalities, much less the support of their beautiful voices. Under the leadership of Musical Director Tiffani Burgess, however, After Eight has grown immensely this semester, both musically and personally. With inspirational masterpieces such as “Do You Realize??” by the Flaming Lips and heart-wrenching ballads like “My Immortal “by Evanescence, After Eight is well on the way to becoming one of the top all-female a cappella groups on campus.

This semester we welcomed into our ranks two amazing new women: freshman Meghan Burns and French exchange student Camille Pereda. After accepting sweet little Camille into the group, After Eight became obsessed with her adorable French accent and, inevitably, everything else French. She was the inspiration for the theme of our Evening Affair spring concert (Moulin Rouge) and even performed the classic doo-wop hit, “In the Still of the Night” (“Dans la Nuit, Mon Amour”) in her native language. Unfortunately, all good things must come to an end, and as much as we have convinced ourselves that they are not leaving us, we are forced to say goodbye to Camille and our graduating seniors, Claire Schmidt, Sara Twerdok, and Meredith Bennett-Smith, three incredible women who have had immeasurable impact on the group over the years. All in all, this year has been tremendous in terms of the group’s personal growth and musicality. I can’t wait to come back in the fall and see where 2011 takes us!