To kick off another year of dazzling Drama productions, Classes 6 and 7 took to the stage in the Assembly Room for a performance of “Newsies, Jr.” on November 9.
A 60-minute version of the 2012 Broadway musical (based on the 1992 film), “Newsies, Jr.” is inspired by the rousing true story of newsboys in New York City. (The show also features a Tony Award-winning score by Alan Menken and Jack Feldman.)
Under the direction of Lindsay Quinn, Head of Middle School Arts & Integration and Drama teacher, the Middle School students gave vibrant and powerful performances over three nights. (The show also featured a special guest – Head of Middle School Hazel Hunt, who appeared in a cameo role in the final scene.) A story of teamwork and friendship, this fun and heartfelt musical delighted our Chapin audiences.
“It has been such a wonderful experience working with this group of young actors,” remarked Ms. Quinn.
The following week, from November 15-18, our talented Upper School actors headed to our Black Box Theater to deliver humorous and compelling performances of “The Bugs” by Don Zolidis.
A story about a group of insects that band together to help save their habitat, the play teaches its viewers about the importance of collaboration and protecting of our environment. As this special production was the first time our Upper Schoolers have performed a “Theater for Young Audiences” (TYA) piece, special help was enlisted from Class 2!
In early October, US actors visited our Lower School science lab for some expert presentations. Each year, Class 2 students research various types of bugs as part of their in-depth insect unit. Inspired by this year’s play, second graders selected insects that are characters. For example, Alex, the firefly; Diana, the monarch butterfly; and Charlie, the cicada.
With enthusiasm and thoughtfulness, the girls presented their extensive findings with the US actors – which helped them to better understand and embody their characters – and shared creative costume sketches. Additionally, two lucky Class 4 students were cast as the smallest spider, “Mochi,” and all of Class 4 enjoyed a special in-school performance on November 17—a true cross-divisional initiative!
“In a story about the importance of collective action and interdependence, we've been gifted just that,” said Director and Head of LS Arts & Integration Sarah Bellantoni. “It has been a joyful experience bringing this story to life with this group of actors.”
We can’t wait to see our actors in action throughout the rest of the year!
The Bugs Ensemble (Upper School)
Nora Adekoye
CB Black
Lexi Blackston
Annabelle Borsanyi
Kaitlyn Davis
Bette Greenfield
Noor Jaffer (Class 4)
Rashelle Lopez Gomez
Giana Manning-Gold
Evangeline Mujica
Tabitha Orange
Minnie Rose (Class 4)
Emma Sawabini
Fauziah Uddin
Katherine Willinge
Haley Zhang
Tech Crew:
Manha Awais
Taylor Dessler
Zoe Jones
Rashelle Lopez Gomez
Olivia Spence
Maven Nozaki
Nishtha Roy
Isabella Saenz
Fauziah Uddin
Cammyla Villegas-Vernet
Lucia Villegas-Vernet
“Newsies, Jr.” Ensemble (Middle School)
Jolan-Mari Charles
Alicia Chi
Georgia Clifford
Lucy Corcoran
Sydney del Valle
Leela Dilmaghani
Taryn Dunn
Anna Charles Ellis
Julia Ropiak-Emmanuel
Izzy Emrich
Vanessa Glantz
Mila Goldberg
Taylor Holder
Rhyan Katcher
Lola Lee
Alex Love
Claudia Kim
Katrusia McPeek
Claudia Morcate-Martin
Axya Ofosu-Mensah
Lily Ostrover
Matilda Party
Courtney Pellegrino
Riya Pherwani
Audrey Phillips
Meher Sablok
Arabella Yim O’Shaughnessy
Diana Zollar
