Upper Darby Summer Stage

On Tuesday February 8th, thirteen high school band members represented our school at the Trailways South Conference Honors Band. It was held at Edgerton Performing Arts Center. The students who participated were Brett Miller, Josh Kupsche, Sierra Wirth, Chris Yezzi, Madison Graf, Tori Nizzi, Madeline Wenzel, Megan Karczewski, Noah Argus, Katie Woodward, Allison Reichert, Summer Manzke, and Arianna Wichman. The students rehearsed all day as a full band with Rick Kirby and performed later that night. It was a day filled with great music, collaborating, and lots of fun. The student performed four songs, “Three Colonial Moments”, “The Willows of the Winter,” “Call of The Wild,” and ‘Crown Imperial March.” The director of the honors band was

When I was in the third grade and began to take an interest in musicals, my two best friends and I decided we would perform “Popular” from Wicked in our school’s talent show. I was looking forward to having fun with my friends onstage, but secretly I was wondering what I had gotten myself into. I had so many doubts about going onstage in front of my entire school. What if they thought I sang badly? Why didn’t we use backup music? Pink is definitely not my color. It was my first time singing by myself with a large audience watching me, but nonetheless, the three of us went onstage. Regardless of what others may have thought about us, we all felt exhilarated and relieved once we were done.

I went, because I loved Charlie Brown comics and his holiday specials that they played every year (the extra credit was just a bonus). Later on in the year, the class found out that our class musical for the end of the year was Leader of the Pack. That show was cool to perform. At around the 2-weeks-before-the-end-of-school point of school, Mrs. Fisher told the class about auditioning for Burnet Ensemble Theatre Company, which was the Burnet High School UIL competition group, and I found out quickly that I was the only person to audition from Burnet Middle School, and I made friends at the high school also. This part is not my favorite to talk about since I don't like talking about when I'm sad because I consider myself a cheerful person, but here it goes. When I was a sophomore, the school did an activity to show students the dangers of drunk-driving called Shattered Dreams. Basically to sum it up, the theatre department of a certain

For many, a fun summer often includes a visit to some sort of fair, whether it be the county fair or even the state fair. One of the unique aspects of the Ohio State Fair, specifically, is that they have their own youth choir known as the All-Ohio State Fair Youth Choir. This is an organization designed to bring high school students from all over the state of Ohio to live at the Ohio State Fair for eighteen days to make music. Throughout this experience, I have learned many important skills that will stick with me throughout the entirety of my life. Here is just a small sample of what I’ve learned.

The Fall Appalachian Dance Ensemble was a great experience for me because I had never seen a live performance by our school or any other school before. It also served as a great date because my girlfriend is an avid dancer herself. We may go see the spring show if the school even does such a

When I attended the Crane Youth Music Camp (CYM) in Potsdam, NY for the first time in 2012, I studied vocal performance only for the reason that I enjoyed singing as a hobby. I felt lost being in a camp filled with future music majors, because at the time I wanted to be an engineer. It was not until I returned to CYM in 2014, when playing guitar and singing with my new friends, that I had my first realization. If I wanted to be an engineer, I would be at a STEM camp, but I had chosen to return to music, a place where I would stay.

In my younger years I was highly involved in show choir and school productions. Any way I could get on stage and strut my stuff I would take it. My sixth grade year of elementary school, the year before I would make the massive leap into middle school, I decided I would perform in my final production. The play was Aladdin and I had my eye on the role for the Genie and I wanted this role so much. I practiced this role day and night from singing to dancing to even some impressions anything that would ensure my little mind that I would get the part.

Through the years I’ve done theatre as an extracurricular activity. I started when I was in 1st grade and I show no signs of stopping. Theatre has helped me grow in so many ways; I owe my

I joined crew and painted sets, worked the curtains, helped the prop master, and was a stage hand. I did not audition until the fall of my junior year for A Christmas Carol. I received the part of the Ghost of Christmas Future and caroler. Then in the spring I auditioned and was given the role of Emily Parrish in Phantom of the Soap Opera the Musical. I also started auditioning for shows at Muncie Civic Theatre and got into The Little Mermaid Jr. and Once on this Island Jr. both in which I was chorus. Each time I stepped on that stage I experienced the same thrill. The same rush of jittery ecstasy that I experienced for Romeo and Juliet. I was addicted.

Anderson Theatre has truly shaped me into the mature young adult I am today. My freshman year, I decided to join theatre not knowing what to expect. None of my friends were in theatre, and it was something I decided to do completely on my own. I walked into the first meeting, late because I had cheer practice, and sat in the back of the Fine Arts Room by myself. I then let cheerleading take over all of my time, and did not return to theatre until Dry Tech. That day, I walked in and started working. In that 12 hour day, I realized that doing hair and makeup is something I am really great at. In that 12 hour day, I met dozens of people with whom I am still friends with today. Because of Anderson Theatre, I met my best friend. I laughed more than

Smithville High School presented two winter concerts. I got the opportunity to view both performances. The first show was by the Vocal Music Department directed by Mr. Marcus Duncan and aided by accompanist Emily Rowland, and the second show was by the Jazz Ensemble and Symphonic Band conducted by Mr. Tom Brockman and Ms. Brittany Terwey. There were very similar aspects of the two concerts and very different aspects of the two concerts.

When I was fourteen me and my two best friends went to see Shrek the Musical at a place in Memphis called Stage Door Theatres. I immediately fell in love with that show and I realized that I wanted to tryout for a show at Stage Door. In October of 2016 I found out that they were having auditions for Aladdin Jr. and I immediately signed up. I tried out and I made it even though I was only an extra I was super excited to have made the show. The

Over the past 3 years at Eleanor Roosevelt Middle School I've been able to blossom into a culture of music and theater. I started choir in 6th grade, along side doing that years musical. Music and theater weren't new to me at that point, for I knew what it's like to dance to loud music in my room, and what it's like to sit through musicals and plays my older sisters did. And I was eager to star in my own musicals and concerts. That’s when "Shakespeare Comes to Calamity Creek" showed me what it's like to be in a performance, and how much work it takes outside of it. That it takes more than just the time at rehearsal to make a show great. How it takes a couple of hours just to remember lines, or how it takes a couple of rehearsals to really get

This was all a gateway into a world I have never seen myself in. Once the show ended I continued to search for ways to be involved in the theatre department, being enrolled in the class wasn't enough for me, I needed more. Quickly I developed a passion for theatre and continued to find new ways to do it. The summer of my freshman year I was involved in a play in the park. During one of our performances a tree fell down onto the area we

For this quarter, I watched the top band at Highland Park play. They were playing because they were invited to play at a competition in Peoria and they wanted to practice playing the three songs to an audience without any breaks just like they would in the competition. I thought it would be an excellent opportunity to hear a really good high school band perform. I also knew many of the performers from an orchestra I play in called Symphony Orchestra at Midwest Young Artists. The band played very well and the experience taught me many different things that I could improve with my ensemble playing.