Bulldog Benefit Concert to honor GVHS choral director’s 30-year teaching legacy

GUNNISON—The Casino Star Theatre will host the Bulldog Benefit Concert on Thursday, March 13, at 7 p.m., spotlighting the 30-year career of Gunnison Valley High School (GVHS) Choral Director Jody Allred.

Organizers say the event, which benefits GVHS music programs, promises a special evening featuring both the local high school and Snow College elite choirs.

Allred, who has spent three decades cultivating musical talent in the South Sanpete School District, will direct two of GVHS’s auditioned ensembles—Cantus!, the first women’s audition choir at the school, and Sonos, a mixed chamber and show choir.

Over the years, these groups have performed across Utah, including multiple Utah Jazz basketball games, the annual Christmas at Temple Square concert series and the reopening of the Utah State Capitol Building. They also regularly appear at region and state music festivals. The choirs now have nearly 400 alumni.

Snow College will bring the Cadence Chamber Choir, an auditioned ensemble directed by Dr. Michael Huff. Huff oversees several choral groups at the Horne School of Music and is known for conducting community and professional choirs throughout the state.

He was the founding conductor of Utah Voices and spent more than a decade as an associate conductor of the Utah Symphony Chorus. His choir’s repertoire spans classical, jazz, musical theater, rock and contemporary arrangements.

Together, these choirs last performed at the Casino Star Theatre in 2023 and will reunite this year to celebrate Allred’s impact as he approaches retirement after 30 years in the classroom. Organizers emphasize that proceeds from the event will help safeguard Allred’s legacy by funding instruments, sheet music and other necessities for GVHS music programs.

Admission is donation-based, with a suggested contribution of $5 per person. Casino Star Theatre Foundation, now celebrating its 20th year as a nonprofit, will host the benefit concert as part of its continuing mission to bring top-quality entertainment to central Utah while preserving the theater’s historic character. The Foundation’s final event of this season—an exotic bird and reptile show by Scales and Tails of Utah—is scheduled for April 28.

Local sponsors include Roland and Julia Christenson, the Miner Foundation, Central Utah Radiology, Ensign Engineering, Kevin Rasmussen Excavating, Redmond Minerals, Rocky Mountain Power, State Bank of Southern Utah, Dr. Richard Nay, Robert and Jeannette Andersen, Jim and Suzanne Sanders, and several additional contributors. Partial funding comes from Creative West and the National Endowment for the Arts.

All community members and music enthusiasts are invited to attend and support the young performers. Organizers say the benefit concert will not only celebrate Allred’s milestone 30-year career but also shape the future of performing arts in Gunnison Valley.

For More Information visit casinostartheatre.com.