Last Thursday and Friday, Point University welcomed more than 500 students from across Troup County to the Scott Fine Arts Center for a performance of the opera A Muskrat Lullaby, by Edward Barnes. The storyline of the children’s opera is based on the book Mama Don’t Allow by Thacher Hurd.
The opera, directed by Dr. Toni Anderson, was presented by music students from Point University’s Department of Fine Arts, chaired by Andrew Harry. Audiences were comprised of students from West Point Elementary School, Lafayette Christian School, and strings orchestra students from Troup High School and Long Cane Middle School.
Tenor Daniel Stith ’26 held the title role of the opera’s main character, Miles the Muskrat. Miles, who loves to sing, soon meets others who share his singing passion: Bird (Rebekah Dell ’25, soprano), Spider (Madelynn Williams ’25, alto), and Toad (Truitt VanMeter ’25, baritone). Zoë Pike ’27, who played Miles’ muskrat mother, narrated the opera.
In the swamp, the audience is introduced to the Alligator Boss, played by Dr. Byron Cartwright, retired music professor, and his alligator gang: Brayden Pearce ’27, Eryn Blakely ’26, and Porter Scanlon. The alligators invite Miles and his friends to sing that evening at their alligator ball. They promise there will be “refreshments to eat” afterward.
For many elementary students, the performance was their first introduction to the art form of opera. The performance kept the young audience captivated and fully engaged. “Out of all my days seeing plays, that was the best!” said Gavin Jackson of Lafayette Christian School.
Sawyer Firth, also from Lafayette Christian School, agreed, saying, “The songs were really good and the actors performed really well!”
The production “reinforced what it means to truly become a professional performer,” said Callie Hammond, orchestra director of Troup High School and Long Cane Middle School orchestras. “Changing hats of ‘self’ to ‘performer’ is possibly the most challenging part of being a performer, and the cast of A Muskrat Lullaby displayed this skill admirably.”
