Liam Sheeley ’22 is an All-State vocalist with the Xavier Chorus, but that's not the half of it. He has learned to sing in different languages, and was one of 200 U.S. students selected for the All-National Honors Ensemble for Mixed Choir. The event, typically in San Diego every year, was held virtually from Jan. 22-24. Sheeley also is part of the Mercy/Xavier Theater program and appeared in “God’s Favorite” in the fall.
He recently was named the CAS Performing Arts winner from Xavier.
Classmate Nicholas Cusano was named the CAS Visual Arts recipient.
CAS (Connecticut Association of Schools) annually honors two outstanding seniors who excel in the performing or visual arts from each of the member schools in the state.
Sheeley is undecided on his college choice but has been accepted into the Honors program at the University of Connecticut.
Cusano will attend the University of Hartford in the fall. He said he’ll take every possible art class but most likely will concentrate on graphic design and illustration.
“It’s nice to be recognized for something I put a lot of time into,” Cusano said, “especially since I am getting my business off the ground.”
Business? Yes, he’s an entrepreneur, selling some of the work he has done and commissioning pieces. He is working on a website, and has an Instagram account called cusano_creations.
Sheeley, likewise, was appreciative for being recognized for his talent.
“I do music and drama because it is what I am passionate about,” Sheeley said. “I’ve loved music for as long as I can remember, but it is nice to get recognition for it all because I do put a lot of time and effort in to improve my singing, my acting, playing piano, guitar … I’m really grateful for the recognition.”
His plan now is to major in the linguistics/language area most likely with a minor in music while taking advantage of extracurricular opportunities in music ensembles such as choir or an acapella group.