Grace Fluharty – Class of 2019 – A Good Case of the Flu

Incredibly talented singer and actress…If you have seen a school musical in recent years, you know Grace Fluharty.  Born in Newport News on November 3, 2000, Grace has been singing since she was a young girl. “My mom said I could sing before I could talk,” Grace said. When she was young (and able to talk), her mother would play the piano while she sang along, and her father would watch and act as her audience. These performances for her parents were the first of many for her.

As a child, another pastime she pursued was acting. Grace’s mother, Mrs. Stephanie Fluharty, hosted Summer at the Cape drama camps that Grace would attend, even as early as kindergarten. These talents her mother helped her develop became a central part of her life.  Today she participates heavily in chorus and theater programs at Cape Henry and says she owes much of her success to the accessibility of these programs.  What Grace likes most about CHC is that there is a variety of programs that suit different people’s interests and passions; for her, she followed her passion through the music and theater programs. Grace also likes the freedom to create clubs and has high hopes for the new club she created this year: The Acapella Club, the goal for this club is to enjoy singing without any musical accompaniment and compete against other schools.  She also hopes to arrange group and inter-club competitions.

Grace’s proudest accomplishment as of today has been singing at a hotel restaurant called Varia, which is in The Main, a posh hotel in Norfolk. This restaurant features guest singers nightly and once even had a Broadway singer, so it was an achievement for Grace to perform at such a restaurant. While there, she performed by the piano from 7:00 to 11:00p.m. as the featured entertainment.

Grace’s dream is to make it to Broadway.  She is inspired by many Broadway performers, most notably Lin Manuel Miranda. After graduation, Grace hopes to go to New York University and pursue musical theater.  In addition, she would like to audition for different musical theater parts and hopefully make her way to a role on Broadway. She owes her pursuit of this dream to people within Cape Henry such as Mr. Logan, Mrs. Hazelwood, and of course, her mother, Mrs. Fluharty. No doubt, Grace will continue to receive their guidance and encouragement on her journey to Broadway.