Live! From Lewisburg to highlight local churches

Christopher Benson, The Daily Item, Sunbury, Pa.
·3 min read

Jun. 15—LEWISBURG — Live! From Lewisburg, a community spotlight on area artists, organizations, and energy is coming together to make a small river town a hub for creativity.

Live! From Lewisburg Variety Show began at the Campus Theatre in November 2021.

The second was on May 18 at the restored Art Deco building built in 1941 to serve as Lewisburg's hub for community, news and entertainment on a mission continuing today.

The Live! From Lewisburg: Into the Light series started in 2022, according to series creator Cynthia Pelter, executive director of CommUnity Zone, 328 Market St.

With COVID numbers down, Peltier said it seemed the right time to start the series.

Mayor Kendy Alvarez said the Lewisburg community supports the arts in a variety of ways.

"Live! From Lewisburg, especially in this installment, explores the acoustic splendor of our local churches," said Alvarez.

"It's something I've always wanted to do," Peltier said. "Timing is everything."

Alvarez complimented Peltier's efforts.

"Cindy is continuously looking for ways to bring the community together and finds quite interesting way to do it," said Alvarez.

Along with Campus Theatre, five different Lewisburg churches and musicians are participating.

The series kicked off on June 2 with Kj Reimensnyder-Wagner performing at First Baptist Church.

All series performances start at 7 p.m. The performers scheduled include:

Andy Seal at St. John's United Church of Christ on June 23.

Eric Sundberg at Beaver Memorial United Methodist Church on July 28.

Danny O'Neill at St. Paul's United Methodist Church on Aug. 25.

Jenna Mammina and Rolf Sturm at St. Andrew's Episcopal Church on Sept. 22.

Peltier said her hope is for the series to give people an opportunity to be in eye-appealing sanctuaries while appreciating the acoustics and beauty of churches while listening to talented musicians.

"The heart of this show is the community," Peltier said. "We believe the arts can bring the community together and provide a guiding light for us all."

Reimensnyder-Wagner gave credit to Seal for his sound tech abilities. She has been doing music full-time for 20 years, but playing music longer than 30 years.

"It's not so much it's (the churches) a sacred space, it's a peaceful place to come and reflect on your own thoughts," Reimensnyder-Wagner said.

She said it is a chance to experience architecture as well.

Her experience working with "Into the Light" went very smoothly.

She said she was excited to see people come together during such divisive times.

"I'm excited Cindy's vision is coming to be," Reimensnyder-Wagner said. "She has done so much for the community, but some don't know the face. I'm glad people are getting to know the CommUnity Zone."

Reimensnyder-Wagner said she is glad CommUnity Zone is becoming more visible in the community.

She said church acoustics are great and a safer environment free from weather and has good parking.

"We have been in great shape with that. They're the things I notice as a performer," said Reimensnyder-Wagner.

She said overall the performance was great but everything that could go wrong did.

"But we made light of it," she said. "We just kept going on, smiling, and laughed. That's what we should do. Things happen."

She said the night turned out to be "magical."

"By having those little glitches it brought us all together. That's what we have to deal with in life right now," Reimensnyder-Wagner said.

Funding for Live! From Lewisburg comes from the Degenstein Foundation, Bucknell Community Engagement Fund, and Lewisburg Downtown Partnership.

Peltier felt hopeful about Live! From Lewisburg's future.

"I think it's something I'd like to continue to do," Peltier said. "We need more of that."

For more information on the series, visit communityzonelewisburg.org/live-from-lewisburg.