Junior SING! Preps for February Performance
Crew members gather on the stage, surrounded by last year’s sets. Photo: Deborah Zeleny
By ANDREW BODNARCHUK and NICOLAS MITSUDA
Junior SING! met on November 4 in the auditorium after school for their first rehearsal. On February 10 and 11 next year, three different SING! performances will be held, produced by SoFresh (a freshmen and sophomore conjunction), juniors, and seniors. This year's SING! will make it the 76th year of this show.
Last year’s SoFresh commissioners, Elise Badmaev and Hillary Stephany Hernandez, have returned as junior SING! commissioners to seek victory against the seniors and SoFresh. “I loved it so much that I decided to come back again, and this time to win!” said Badmaev. The writers concluded writing the script shortly before the first rehearsal so that the actors could get started on their work on the first day of practice.
“People should join SING! because it's not only about singing or dancing or creating props, it's more about the friendships you form and the community you build over that period of time,” said Badmaev. “It makes your high school experience more fulfilling, in my opinion.”
“It's a community affair, people with equal interests who want to show off their talent,” said Mr. Lawrence Kolotkin, the coordinator of student affairs.
To get into SING!, students had to go through an audition process. “For actors specifically, the directors send out the script and you tell them who you’d like to play and then you read a short monologue for that character,” said Kassidy Donald, lead actor for junior SING!
Students tend to come back to the show after their first year. “You always find kids that rise up to be leaders, rise up to be singers, they find their niche,” said Mr. Kolotkin.
The atmosphere also contributes to who joins. “Everyone is super supportive so no one is nervous or anything,” said Donald, who came back for her second year in a row. “I was in SoFresh SING! last year and it was amazing – one of my favorite high school memories for sure.”
Being lead actor is not an easy task, but the support from peers is what brought Donald into the role. “It’s a little nerve wracking, I'll be honest,” she said. “My friends, Sara and Meir, are a lot more versed in acting and singing on stage than me. But the acting directors and chorus directors are extremely supportive and calm my nerves. So far it’s feeling pretty cool to be a lead.”
The art department collaborates in the hallway behind the auditorium. Photo: Deborah Zeleny.
A typical practice runs through periods 10 and 11 in the auditorium after school. Each person has an assigned role and group they work with during the period; groups like acting and dance take turns sharing the stage.
“For acting, our directors plan out a couple scenes they want to work through for the day,” said Donald. “Then we read through the scenes in the Siberias [the corridors that lead to the north and south wings] for the first half of SING! while other groups are using the stage. When we have the stage, we focus on movement, spacing, and projection, and we work out any kinks in the script or stage directions.”
Practice can be work but also a space for fun. “There are so many times that jokes are cracked which just makes me feel that it's a great interactive experience for all,” said Badmaev.
SING! isn’t all about winning the prize, it’s also about the journey the students have, facing challenges along the way, but with their peers there to help and support them.
“I love how students start off with nothing and end up with a show,” said Mr. Kolokin. “I would never be able to judge it because all the kids would get full points. I could see how much effort they put into it, and that is what I enjoy the most.”
Make sure to mark February 10 and 11 on your calendar so you can come to cheer on all three SING! teams in this year's competition.