Cody McSherry has been performing for as long as he can remember. In many ways, performing is at the core of what he does and who he is.

As he prepares to experience things in life that he never has before, the 2021 graduate of Lancaster Catholic High School and native of Conestoga can't imagine an existence without performing.

"As a person, I'll continue to perform," said McSherry, who's on track to graduate from the University of Pittsburgh in May of 2025. "I don't know who it will be with or if it will be solo. ... Performing is something you do forever."

McSherry is currently a singing, dancing, accordion-playing, music-producing member of the Pittsburgh-based, nationally known traveling performance troupe, the Tamburitzans, whose members are all college students. When McSherry graduates from college this spring, his four-year stint with the Tamburitzans will end.

McSherry said he has enjoyed his time with the Tamburitzans.

"You form bonds in the Tamburitzans. You're living together on tours, and we all share in the joy of performing. We all have a lot in common. It's a great way to explore performing," he said.

McSherry will perform with the group one final time in Lititz on Saturday, Oct. 19, at 3 p.m. at Warwick Middle School, 401 Maple St. The hour-and-40-minute show titled "Legacy" will feature the 25-member Tamburitzans performing folk music and dancing from eight different countries and regions of the world.

Tickets for the performance can be purchased at http://www.thetamburitzans.org.

Following the Lititz show, McSherry will perform with the Tamburitzans at a number of venues across the country before his time with the troupe ends in the spring.

"From the audience's perspective, it's going to be an exciting show," said McSherry. "You're experiencing a lot of bright and energetic dances. You get an enormous variety of music, which keeps the audience engaged in the show."

"This is the last performance of the Tamburitzans in Lititz which I will be a part of," continued McSherry. "I'd like it to be the biggest performance of the Tamburitzans in Lititz, just because I want to share the moment with as many people as possible. I tend to be a person who likes to look ahead. This is definitely a chapter that will be hard to close. ... I'll definitely be excited at the Lititz show. It's going to be a weird feeling for sure."

For McSherry, performing is a way to interact with an audience and a tool used for teaching and entertaining.

"I think performing, specifically music and dance, is one of the best ways to share a culture," said McSherry. "You're playing really fun music, and you're getting to show off a little bit. For me, it's about exposing a culture to people. It's a lot about being an ambassador for that culture."

McSherry's post-graduation plans include learning, teaching and graduate school.

"I want to teach," said McSherry. "I've wanted to teach language for years. I'm a little indecisive about which languages, but I'm leaning toward the Slavic languages. I want to be a professor."