This week, the Prospector had the pleasure of recording Olivia Briggs-Hale (12), a singer and student here at Manitou. She sang three songs, “When We Were Young” by Adele, “Hide and Seek” by Imogen Heap and “When I Was Your Man” by Bruno Mars.

You might recognize Briggs-Hale from the spring musical, The Music Man. She played Marian, the librarian, which was one of the lead roles. This was the first acting performance she had at Manitou. “The musical was my first, and sadly my last,” says Briggs-Hale. “It was a neat experience. At my old school, I never got an opportunity like that. I was pretty surprised being new and getting one of the leads. Everyone was super supportive and I loved it.”

Despite her success in the musical, acting is not her only talent. Briggs-Hale has been singing with the Colorado Springs Children Chorale since she was seven. She says,”[The Chorale] has concerts all the time. I don’t do a lot of solos anymore, but I used to.”

As you can imagine, the musical and the Colorado Springs Children Chorale have two, very different atmospheres. Briggs-Hale had to adapt to this, since she has spent many years singing with a big group of people, and not alone. “There’s more pressure when singing in the play rather than by yourself, because people are watching you and expecting a lot from you. I have training for 11 years. I know how to work with that, but when you are by yourself, you can experiment. If you mess up, it’s okay, but if you mess up on stage, everyone can hear you.”

Briggs-Hale’s passion for singing, and career with the Colorado Springs Children Choral, was all inspired by her great-grandmother. “My great-grandma was an opera singer, and my dad, when I was little, would tell me stories about her, and how much he loved her, so I was like, ‘I can do that’. I don’t do opera though. I sing, probably because it is in my family and it’s something my family really supports me in doing.”

Along with singing, briggs-Hale also has a passion for the piano. “I took lessons when I was really little, and then didn’t for a very long time, so I just taught myself how to do it, and that’s been for about 3 years now.” In the video, Briggs-Hale demonstrates her piano skills by playing “Hide and Seek” by Imogen Heap and “When I Was Your Man” by Bruno Mars.

Although her passion for music runs deep, Briggs-Hale has other ideas for a career. She will be attending Flagler College, in St. Augustine, Florida next year. She plans on majoring in developmental psychology, and perhaps minoring in theatre. “I’m not going to make singing a career,” says Briggs-Hale. “I would like to keep going with it since I have been doing it for so long. I want to keep it in my life. Music is a really great way to communicate with people, and teach people the power of music.”