FWCD Makes Statement at Slaughter Family Arts Awards

Talent. Dedication. Heart. That is what the Slaughter Family Arts Awards (SFAA) celebrates, as it recognizes and promotes excellence and effort in the fine arts community.

In the inaugural and certainly memorable year, where winners were announced virtually over the course of a week in a series of Facebook videos, FWCD students cleaned up, taking home eight awards and $500 scholarships. Winners were:

• Samuel Asprilla ’23: Excellence in Instrumental Performance (Jazz)

• Grace Bobo ’21: Excellence in Visual Art (Painting)

• Claire Guthrie ’20: Excellence in Theatre (Monologue)

• Alex Nolan ’23: Excellence in Instrumental Performance (Contemporary)

• Humberto Zamorano ’21: Excellence in Visual Art (3D Art)

Will Tuomey ’20 swept the Dance category with three wins for Group Choreography, Solo Choreography and Solo Performance.

More than 90 students from FWCD, All Saint’s Episcopal School, Southwest Christian School and Trinity Valley School entered submissions in one or more of 15 categories. Because of COVID-19 restrictions and socialdistancing protocols, the awards were presented on Facebook and Instagram starting on May 15 at 6:15 p.m. with a live-stream event featuring Rebecca and J Mack Slaughter ’02. Videos revealing the winners were posted shortly thereafter.

“Our goal was to celebrate young people in grades 9-12 for artistic work they are doing in or outside of school,” Rebecca noted. “Not all students who entered were involved in art in their schools, but in some way, art touched their lives.”

To add some revelry to the virtual event, the Slaughters snagged some top talent to present awards, including actors Debbie Brown, David Coffee and Carlson Elizabeth Young ’09; threetime Emmy Award-winning actress Sainty Nelsen and four-time Emmy Award-winning television, film and Broadway actor/producer Eric Nelson, artist Ann Ekstrom; former Associate Artistic Director of the Dallas Theater Center Joel Ferrell; sculptor and painter Nancy Lamb; musician Travis Newman ’02; and dancer and choreographer Merrill West ’97.

Founded in 2020, the Slaughter Family Arts Awards are the brainchild of Rebecca and J Mack (see Alumni Profile on J Mack on page 50), who have a longtime affinity and passion for fine arts. J Mack grew up in a family of musicians and became a singer/ songwriter and actor. Rebecca discovered her passion for ballet when she was 6, dancing with the Gayle Corkery School of Ballet. At 12, Rebecca was accepted to her first intensive workshop with the Joffrey Ballet. This was followed by two summers and a winter term with the School of American Ballet in New York.

Following Rebecca’s years of touring and performing with dance companies and J Mack’s career in TV/film, the two independently decided to move back to the Dallas-Fort Worth area to pursue careers outside of the fine arts world. Rebecca embodied countless roles for a rapidly growing tech company in Plano, while J Mack went back to school to become a doctor. The two reconnected randomly in Dallas, falling deeply in love, and connecting over concerts, dance performances, and other arts-related events.

The couple has a deep love for the arts and dreamed of finding a way to recognize and reward the talent and dedication of students in the Fort Worth community. After being floored by Fort Worth Country Day’s passionate performance of Chicago HSV in spring 2019, the two knew that the time for action was now.

J Mack enlisted others from local schools to serve on the SFAA board, including FWCD: Melodee Halbach, former FWCD Director of Theatre is Creative Director, and Eric Tysinger, FWCD Scott Theater Manager, is Head of Technical Production. Baylee East ’21 is a student board member serving as Project Development Director for the SFAA Outreach Program. She is focused on creating a project to educate the children in art, dance and music. The student board, comprising students from participating schools, is empowered with funding and the goal of improving fine arts education in Fort Worth’s low socioeconomic schools. The proceeds from SFAA will be funneled into the SFAA Outreach Program to fund the developing ideas inspired and created by the student board.

An in-person, outdoor ceremony took place on June 4 on a piece of land on Rocky Creek Ranch outside Fort Worth that the Slaughter family owns. “While we all practiced social distancing, it was a special experience for our inaugural winners and their families,” Rebecca said. “We passed out the awards and sang together, forging a special connection. This was not how J Mack and I thought the awards would play out this year, but we are so grateful to the students for sharing their talents during this time of uncertainty and reminding us all how important the arts are in all of our lives.”

To learn more about the SFAA, visit www.sfaa.org.