True Fan Appreciation from Mary Chapin Carpenter, Part 2

Today's post is written by Arianna Zell, Wolf Trap's former group sales/advertising sales intern.

Before this post really begins, I feel it necessary to give some slight contextual background.

Reveille, my all girls a cappella group from the College of William and Mary had previously received an e-mail from Mary Chapin Carpenter about one of her songs we arranged, "Why Walk When You Can Fly".

Someone had posted a video of us performing the song at one of our final concerts and Mary Chapin was touched by it. Because I had been interning at Wolf Trap, I e-mailed Mary Chapin and long story short, was able to arrange a meet and greet with her manager.

For additional context, please read my initial post on how we ended up on Mary Chapin Carpenter's radar.

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It took several e-mails, tweets, Facebook posts, and phone calls but we made it happen. Reveille A Cappella from the College of William and Mary had the privilege of meeting Mary Chapin Carpenter after her show at Wolf Trap on Saturday, August 18th. And after we met her, she tweeted at us. Mary Chapin Carpenter - a legendary country star and future member of the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame had acknowledged a tiny a cappella group. How cool was that?!

Upon arriving at the concert, Reveille had no idea whether we were actually going to meet Mary Chapin. Earlier that day we learned that she had to leave The Filene Center almost immediately after her show for another gig. Although we were a little bummed, we decided to go in and enjoy the concert regardless of what happened. Boy has she still got it. Mary Chapin Carpenter played for almost two hours, completely blowing the audience away with her low dulcet tones and sweet sense of humor that powerfully captivated the 7,000 people that came to see her.

About half way through her set, I received a phone call from her tour manager and from Wolf Trap’s Program and Production. The meet and greet was ON! Shaking in our boots, we packed up our coolers (way too much food for 14 girls) and headed for backstage. When the time finally came, it really felt surreal. Although she had just poured her heart and soul into her show, Mary Chapin Carpenter hopped right off stage and took the time to meet Reveille. She was such a genuine and kind person and told the group to continue to make beautiful music. The best part about meeting her? She told us to keep in touch. Mary Chapin made the girls in Reveille feel great about making beautiful music, which is something she has the privilege of doing every day.

Reveille would like to thank Red Light Management and the Program and Production Staff for making this possible. Reveille's ten minutes with Mary Chapin Carpenter will continue to inspire us for years to come.