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Zoe Zielinski, Jewel Strothers, Emma Gilby, Candace Burgess, Sam Gardner and Faith Williams singing an acoustic cover of Michael Jackson's "Black or White" on SUN Feb 10, 2013 at the Hill House Kaufmann Center. Hope Academy's HAT Co students were the opening act for children's author, Christopher Paul Curtis. This was a Pittsburgh Arts and Lecture Series event. The singers are accompanied by Hope Academy teaching artist and music director, Michael Chapman, on guitar; Mimi Thomas, on cajon;: and Annajane Lowe on bass.

This music video to the They Might Be Giants' song, Happy Doesn't Have to Have an Ending, was created by 12 students at Hope Academy of Music and the Arts, in collaboration with Squonk Opera and under the direction of their production manager, Michelle Carello. The students, from 6- to 12-years-old, learned how to create stop motion animations with paper, objects, white boards and themselves (pixilations). The music video will premier on Saturday, March 27 at 7:00 pm at the Kelly-Strayhorn Theater as part of Hope Academy's daylong Spring Music Festival. The song will be performed by Hope Academy's Voices of Hope vocal ensemble.

For more information about Hope Academy, visit: www.HopeAcademyArts.blogspot.com

For more information about Squonk Opera, visit:
www.squonkopera.org

Meredith Hoppe leads a shadow puppet workshop at City Theatre on Sunday, Oct 6. "For the Girl Who Sleeps in Snow," by Co(lab)trix, is shown as an example, and then the students make and perform their own shadow puppet show to the Frank O'Hara poem, Les Étiquettes Jaunes.

Hope Academy students Candace Burgess, Mimi Thomas, Faith Williams and Emma Smith singing a Marvin Gaye medley of "Mercy Mercy Me" and "What's Going On."

via YouTube Capture

via YouTube Capture

via YouTube Capture

Hat Co singing Wavin" Flag at EECM's 29th Annual MLK event at East Liberty Presbyterian Church

Original song by Mimi O'Malley performed by Hope Academy's Teen Theater Company (HAT Co) band. Mimi and Candace on vocals, James on upright bass, Brandon and Desmond on percussion, Francisco on guitar, Henry Schultz on cello. Halloween rehearsal.

Hope Academy's teaching artists and select students--including Michael Chapman (guitar), Emma Cox (vocal), Anqwenique Wingfield (vocal), Priscilla Boggio (viola), Elliot Beck (percussion), Annajane Lowe (upright bass) and Mimi Thomas (vocal) -- performed Ben Harper's "I Shall Not Walk Alone" for East Liberty Presbyterian Church's 11 am worship service.

Zoe Zielinski, Mimi Thomas, Jewel Strothers, Emma Gilby, Candace Burgess and Faith Williams singing an acoustic cover of Amy Winehouse's "Valerie" on SUN Feb 10, 2013 at the Hill House Kaufmann Center. Hope Academy's HAT Co students were the opening act for children's author, Christopher Paul Curtis. This was a Pittsburgh Arts and Lecture Series event. The singers are accompanied by Hope Academy teaching artist and music director, Michael Chapman, on guitar; Mimi Thomas, on cajon;: and Annajane Lowe on bass.

via YouTube Capture

Uploaded on Dec 17, 2015
"Prmadonna Girl" by Marina and the Diamonds covered by Hope Academy's Teen Theater Company (HAT Co) on classroom instruments. Featuring Kira, Anna, Mimi, Dorothy, Laela, Candace, Henry, Michael, Emily, Raffy, Kennedi, Kyra, desmond, James, Francisco, Emma and Donovan.

Hope Academy's HAT Co was one of the top 5 bands in WYEP's Re(imagiNATION) contest. They competed on SAT May 5 @ 4 pm at Schenley Plaza.
This song, "Lies," was written by Zoe Zielinski and arranged by HAT Co.
Vocals: Alexandra Brown, Candace Burgess, Zoe Zielinski (lead), Jewel Strothers
Keyboard: Bethan Neely
Electric Violin: Bonnie Nickel
Guitar: Zoe Zielinski
Bass: Annajane Lowe
Drumset: Jonathan Lee
Conga: Sam Gardner

HAT Co will be mentored by a local band, selected by WYEP's Cindy Howes, and will perform in two WYEP events.

The other fantastic bands included Ripe for Theft, MOSLOV & Jordan Montgomery, Samj ft. Check Deze and first place winner, Mount Royal.

via YouTube Capture

Hope Academy's teen theater company band, HAT Co, performed in WYEP's Summer Music Festival with three other local teen bands - winners of WYEP's Reimagination contest - on SAT June 28, 2014.

HAT Co band, for this event, feature Annad Lowe, Sam Gardner, Candace Burgess, Mimi Thomas, Zoe Zielinski, Lawrence White and Michael Chapman.

Besides the opportunity to perform, each band selected for WYEP's Reimagine project recorded one song at The Church Recording Studio. HAT Co was matched with producer, Jake Hanner, from the band Donora to record Zoe Zielinski's original song, "Gold Chains, Diamonds." The song is included on a WYEP Reimagination Compilation CD.

WYEP's blog says:

Each of bands could not sound more different, but their songs on the CD exhibit a high level of professionalism, energy, and musical talent.

Hat Co's song featuring Zoe Z., "Gold Chains," has an R&B / Soul flavor. Zoe sings with a mature confidence, emotion, and power, which is usually difficult for young musicians to convey through a recording, but Zoe does it successfully.

Follow us on Instagram (hopeacademyarts); Twitter (@HopeAcademyArts); and facebook (facebook.com/HopeAcademy). HAT Co has a new bandcamp page: http://hatco.bandcamp.com.