Hope College will host its 73rd annual Nykerk Cup competition on Saturday, Nov. 3, at 8 p.m. at the Holland Civic Center, located at 150 W. Eighth St.
The event, one of a variety of activities scheduled during the college's Parents' Weekend, will feature more than 200 members of the freshman and sophomore classes competing in song, plays and oration. The participating classes this year are the freshman Class of '11 and the sophomore Class of '10.
The public is invited. Admission is free.
The competition, first held on March 16, 1936, is named in honor of the originator of the program, John Nykerk, a professor, college dean and founder of the HopeCollege department of music. The event is continuously staged before a large audience.
The freshman play will be "Outside the Box," coached by juniors Allison Fisher of Wilmington, Ill., and Shanna Mack of Allegan.
The freshman play morale coaches are juniors Daniel Gruben of Wheaton, Ill., Kyle Terpstra of Grand Rapids and Matthew Minkus of Zeeland.
The freshman song will be "Splish Splash." The freshman song will be coached by juniors Jennifer Fait of San Diego, Calif., and Meghan Wahl of Defiance, Ohio.
The freshman song morale coaches are juniors Ben Oegema of Lawton, Chris Sikkema of Rochester, Minn., and Graham Carlson of LaGrange, Ill.
The sophomore play is "Cinderella," coached by seniors Erika Oglesby of Castro Valley, Calif., and Calista Peterson of Hudsonville.
The sophomore play morale coaches are seniors Andrew Denniger of Winfield, Ill., Andrew Liang of Holland and Brian Eisinger of Grand Blanc.
The sophomore song will be "Annie Choral Highlights," coached by seniors Lauren Stacks of Concord and Chelsea Stephenson of Salt Lake City, Utah.
The sophomore song morale coaches are seniors Jon Oegema of Lawton and Kyle Clarkson of Midland.
This year's oration theme is "A Second Glance." The freshman orator will be Sara Saavedra of Holland, whose speech is titled "The Secret to Democracy." She is coached by juniors Ayannah Abiade of Kalamazoo and Barbra Rubio of Holland. The sophomore orator will be Robin Baker of Cicero, Ind., whose speech is titled "A Second Glance." She is coached by senior Courtney Vredevoogd of Grand Rapids.
The general chair of Nykerk is senior Kelsey Hinkle of Cadillac, and general chair-elect is junior Lisa Borton of Hudson. The senior treasurer is Heidi Snyder of Flushing, and the junior treasurer is Anna Gagliardi of Midland. The senior publicity chair is Claudia Klimkowski of Carmel, Ind., and the junior publicity chair is Kariayne Cozzie of Evergreen Park, Ill. Senior Abby DeVuyst of Webster, N.Y., and junior Torey Allen of Williamston are the production chairs. The secretary is junior Abigail Drake of Portage.
The weekend will feature a variety of other performances and presentations in addition to the Nykerk Cup competition.
The gallery of the De Pree Art Center is featuring exhibitions of new work by Erin Carney and Jim Cogswell through Friday, Nov. 16. The De Pree Art Center is located on Columbia Avenue at 12th Street. The gallery is open Mondays through Saturdays from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Sundays from 1 p.m. to 5 p.m. Admission is free.
The college's biology and chemistry seminar series will each feature addresses by members of the Hope faculty on Friday, Nov. 2, in the A. Paul Schaap Science Center. Biologist Dr. Debbie Swarthout will present "Sensitivity of Stomata to Light and C02 in Endophyte Infected and Uninfected Grasses: Implications for Water-Use Efficiency and Drought Tolerance" at 3 p.m. in room 1019, and chemist Dr. Michael Pikaart will present "A Tale of Tails: Histone Modification and Gene Expression" at 4 p.m. in room 1000. The A. Paul Schaap Science Center is located on College Avenue at 12th Street. Admission to both talks is free.
The college's orchestra, directed by Richard Piippo, will perform with college organist Dr. Huw Lewis on Friday, Nov. 2, at 7:30 p.m. in Dimnent Memorial Chapel, located on College Avenue at 12th Street. The concert, part of the college's Skinner Organ rededication series, will feature the world premiere of the "Concerto for Organ and Orchestra" by Benjamin Boyle. Admission is free.
HopeCollege football will host Olivet College on Saturday, Nov. 3, at 1 p.m. at Holland Municipal Stadium, located on Fairbanks Avenue at 13th Street. Tickets are $7 for reserved seats, $5 for adult general admission, $3 for general admission for those under 18, and free for children five and under. They are being sold in advance at the ticket office in the front lobby of the DeVos Fieldhouse, which faces Fairbanks Avenue between Ninth and 11th streets and is open weekdays from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tickets will also be available at the gate.
Apollo's Banquet, an ensemble of dancers and musicians that present 18th century choreographic master works in concert, will perform on Saturday, Nov. 3, at 7:30 p.m. in Snow Auditorium of Nykerk Hall of Music, located in the center of campus along the former 12th Street between College and Columbia avenues. Admission is free.
The college's men's ice hockey club team will host Oakland on Saturday, Nov. 3, at 9 p.m. at The Edge Ice Arena, located at 4444 Holland Ave., near Ransom Street north of Holland.
The three-day Parents' Weekend, running Friday-Sunday, Nov. 2-4, will also feature activities geared toward parents of current students specifically, including a variety of open classes and discussion sessions focused on various aspects of college life.