Eileen Jahn
director of Nebraskats, 308.865.8618
The University of Nebraska at Kearney Nebraskats annual concert tour, set for Wednesday – Friday, March 30 – April 1, will take them to seven communities in Nebraska and Kansas to perform.
The show choir tour will conclude with a 3 p.m. home concert in the UNK Fine Arts Recital Hall Sunday, April 10. The home concert is free and open to the public. The Nebraskats, which features seven male and seven female vocalists, has been in existence longer than any other currently performing collegiate show choir in Nebraska.
The tour opens on Wednesday with the Nebraskats performing in Overton, Elwood and at Eustis-Farnam. On Thursday, March 31, the Nebraskats will travel to perform in high schools in Axtell and Phillipsburg, Kan. The tour will end with performances in Wood River and Shelton on Friday, April 1.
The Nebraskats will be performing Everybody Wants to Be a Cat, Scales and Arpeggios, The Music of M-G-M, Manhattan Melodies, Friendship, Don’t Fence Me In, Steam Heat, Medley from Smokey Joe’s Café, Disney Spectacular, Trashin’ the Camp, 60’s Partyline and When I Lift Up My Head.
Each year, approximately 40-50 students compete for the 14 singer/dancer positions in Nebraskats. Membership is open to all full-time UNK students. Auditions for the 2005-2006 Nebraskats and the Nebraskats Band are scheduled for Saturday, April 30, beginning at 8 a.m. For more information, contact Eileen Jahn, Nebraskats director, 308.865.8618.
Members of the 2004-05 Nebraskats and Nebraskats Band, listed alphabetically by hometown, include:
2004-05 Nebraskats
Ayr- Derek Gangwish, bass
Elgin- Meredith Beckman, soprano
Gibbon- Jenna Johannsen, alto
Grand Island- Russtanna Faimon, soprano
Holdrege- Erin Kosmicki, alto
Kearney-Ashley Hellerich, soprano; Joseph Knispel, tenor; Logan Stickney, tenor
Leigh- Drew Marty, bass
North Platte- Brette Covington, alto
Omaha- Whitney Baker, soprano
Petersburg- Casey Stokes, tenor
Ravenna- Brad Bohn, bass
Verdon- Dustin Johnson, bass
2004-05 Nebraskats Band
Holdrege- Dirk Riley, percussion
Omaha- Sarah Reeks, alto saxophone; Adam Grazier, trumpet; Micah Yost, sound technician
Ravenna- Brad Bohn, bass guitar
Rogers-Joseph Krula, piano
COLORADO
Denver- Ryan Head, guitar
“The Nebraskats are in great demand for performances on campus, and in Kearney and surrounding communities,” Jahn said. In addition, the group has toured and performed in Chicago, Washington, D.C., Japan, Germany, Austria, the Czech Republic, England, China and Australia, as well as for UNK Alumni groups in California and Arizona.
Jahn, who holds a master’s of music in vocal performance from Kansas State University, was a singer/dancer with the Nebraskats 1992-1996. She graduated from UNK in 1996 with a bachelor’s degree in music. In addition to directing the Nebraskats, she operates a private voice and piano studio.
