WinterSong: An Evening with Bel Canto and Friends, is this Friday at 6 p.m. in Nichols Hall. The Harker community is welcome and there is no admission fee and no ticket needed.
The show features the upper school choir Bel Canto, who, in addition to a wide range of genres, will be presenting their most ambitious work ever: a five-song cycle by living composer Eric Whitacre, with Hebrew lyrics by Whitacre’s Israeli wife, Hila Plitmann.
In addition, eight Conservatory Certificate candidates are performing solos. Two are piano pieces, one of which is a Baroque-style suite written by the student; vocal pieces include art songs and works from musical theater and opera.
After kicking off 2010 with a tournament title at the Victory Briefs Tournament in Los Angeles, Harker Speech and Debate has raised the bar again, winning three more tournament titles over the last two weeks.
Two weeks ago, 11 Harker students flew to North Carolina to compete in the Myers Park Laird Lewis Invitational. Eight students managed to make it to elimination rounds in Public Forum debate, including four Gr. 8 students. After attending the Harker Forensics Institute over the summer and applying their skills in the fall, six middle school students were invited to compete in the high school novice division of this national invitational. Jithin Vellian and Kevin Duraiswamy, both Gr. 8, made it to the round of 16 while classmates Stephanie Lu and Neil Khemani advanced to the quarterfinals (top eight) in the tournament.
In the varsity division, Kelsey Hilbrich, Gr. 12 and Frederic Enea, Gr. 10, beat a team from Ohio to claim the Laird Lewis title. Junior Justine Liu and sophomore Akshay Jagadeesh advanced to the round of 16 and earned their first bid to the Public Forum Tournament of Champions.
Both varsity teams attending the Laird Lewis were also invited to compete in the Public Forum Challenge. This elite tournament issues their invitations in the fall to the top 16 teams in the country. The challenge included the other two teams who won PF National Championship Titles in the 2008-09 season. While Liu and Jagadeesh were eliminated after four rounds of the challenge, the TOC National Champion Hilbrich and current partner Enea remained undefeated throughout the entire challenge, including beating both the returning member of the 2009 Grand National Championship team in the semifinal round and the complete 2009 NFL National Championship team in the final round on a 4-1 decision.
Over the three-day weekend, 16 Harker students traveled up to Union City to compete in the James Logan Martin Luther King Jr. Tournament. With competitors from five states in attendance, eleven Harker students made it to elimination rounds. Zina Jawadi, Gr. 8, became the first Harker middle school student to clear the elimination rounds in a high school varsity speech event, making it to quarterfinals in Expository Speaking. Freshmen Aneesh Chona and Anuj Sharma, sophomores Revanth Kosaraju and Ishan Taneja, as well as juniors Christine Chien and James Seifert made it to the round of 32 in Public Forum debate. In the round of 16, the team of Justine Liu and Jagadeesh were seeded to hit junior Ziad Jawadi and sophomore Aakash Jagadeesh. As the higher seed, Jawadi and Aakash were advanced over Liu and Akshay to the quarterfinal round. Both teams earned their second qualifying leg to the Public Forum Tournament of Champions, setting a new record for Harker qualifications in the event. Jawadi and Aakash Jagadeesh promised their teammates that they would try to win the tournament after eliminating another Harker team’s chance at the title.
In a 5-0 decision in finals against a team from Colorado, Jawadi and Aakash claimed the James Logan MLK 2010 Public Forum Championship title.
During the weekend of Jan. 23, students will compete in the NCFL Grand Nationals Qualifier in Sacramento and the Golden Desert National Invitational in Las Vegas.
Student representatives from around the state convened in mid-November to develop proposals for the State Board of Education to encourage student involvement in and improve education.
The Student Advisory Board of Education (SABE), a program of the California Association of Student Councils, presented its recommendations addressing standardized testing, student board involvement, disciplinary actions, alternate accreditation and life skills instruction.
During the five-day conference, The Harker School was recognized for its Cum Laude Society and its emphasis on real-world applications in various class curricula. The school was also highlighted for allowing students to redeem physical education credits for participation in sports and for in-school suspension policies that allow suspended students to keep up with class work.
Darren Syu, Gr. 12, participated in the discussion about student involvement in decision-making. His group aimed to write a proposal that stressed a more active student board and a greater awareness of opportunities to serve as representatives in education development.
Other suggestions included creating a merit-based fee waiver to University of California and California State University schools, and recognizing students who meet the requirements of the Golden State Seal Merit Diploma Program. The group believed that standardized tests like the STAR test did not reflect the full potential of students because of a lack of motivation.
Additionally, the students recommended integrating life skills instruction and practical application into high school curricula and establishing accreditation that recognizes extracurricular activities as supplemental courses – that’s where Harker’s recognition came in.
These students will meet again in February for the Student Advisory Board on Legislation in Education to refine their ideas and present proposals to senate and assembly committees on education.
Student Directed Showcase, the venue for final projects by students in the class of the same name, took place in early January to sell-out crowds. The theme this year was comedy and three vignettes, “Scuba Lessons,” directed by Priya Bhikha, “Check, Please,” directed by Nikita Agrawal and “Christmas Incorporated,” directed by Maggie Woods, all seniors, were performed in front of an enthusiastic audience at the Blackford Theater.
The productions were entirely cast and set by their directors, using volunteer students. The student directors underwent an interview process to be chosen for the class, taught by Laura Lang-Ree. Once selected, the students start researching plays the summer before school begins, and in class Lang-Ree guides them through the myriad details of show direction. They learn the intricacies of casting, budgeting, staging, designing and leading a cast and crew.
In “Check, Please,” Agrawal directed a cast of 15 in her hilarious take on playwright Jonathan Rand’s well-known comedy on the vagaries of blind dinner dates. Woods’ production had nine actors and took a hard and hilarious look at one girl’s Christmas wish for Santa to eliminate her most despised teacher. Bhikha chose another blind date comedy, set in a coffeehouse, in which two good friends sabotage each other’s dates, only to end up with each other; her show featured 14 actors, including extras.
Crew, an integral part of any production, was led by “Advisor and Super-Mom” Lang-Ree, as the directors refer to her in their program notes. Set and lighting design was done by Paul Vallerga of the performing arts department, stage manager was Scott Underwood, Gr. 12, with Araby Martin, Gr. 11, as assistant stage manager. Brian Larsen, performing arts technical director, handled sound design. The deck crew consisted of Bridget Nixon, Rachelle Koch, both Gr. 10 and Gabriel Yanovsky, Gr. 11, and follow spot operators were Charles Levine and Nandita Krishna, both Gr. 10.
The three directors answered questions on their efforts following the performances.
OOC: What was the most challenging part of putting on your production? Agrawal: The most challenging part of putting on the production was being louder than fifteen people! I swear I almost bought a whistle once. Other than that, technical things like learning the lingo of the headset were difficult because it was my first time communicating professionally as a director with the many different people involved.
Woods: Casting was the most difficult part of the process because it was so hard to say “no,” to make steadfast decisions that would partly determine the course of my play, and to work with the other directors to get us each exactly what we needed. We stayed until 9:30pm on call-back night and we had to have a second round of callbacks on Monday in addition to that, so the process was tough and dragged out.
Bhikha: The most challenging part of putting on the production was probably coordinating rehearsal schedules. Everyone had different activities they were involved in at different times, and it was difficult getting everyone to stick to one time, but we did it!
OOC: What was the most fun? Agrawal: Mass cast rehearsals were always the most entertaining, because when everyone came together, there was always an exciting and tangible energy amongst everyone. It was so much fun being in a room of energetic performers who were ready to take risks and be even bigger with their newfound energy. Everyone was there to tell a story, and when we all came together, the show came to life.
Woods: Rehearsals. The people I cast were so personable and friendly with each other that I never had to break up any arguments or pull anyone aside for a “chat.” We were all pretty much friends, or at least friendly acquaintances, and enjoyed each others’ company, so rehearsals seemed more like parties than work. Second would be the SDS classes – again, my fellow directors are two of my best friends and Ms. Lang-Ree is like our second mom. Having SDS classes with them at the end of the day would always brighten my mood or help me cope with stress.
Bhikha: I had the most fun watching my actors grow and seeing the whole show come together. The retreat was really fun as well, as we worked on the show and bonded as a cast.
OOC: Did you watch the audience or the show more during the performance? Agrawal: The first night I watched the show from the audience’s perspective near the door. I don’t think I could have sat down; I was jumping so much. The second night I sat back and attempted to calmly enjoy the show. I crept into the fourth row of the audience and soaked up the experience. I was so happy, nervous, and excited for my actors that I was shaking in my chair the entire time. It was absolutely wonderful being in the midst of a laughing audience and expecting the laughs two lines in advance!
Woods: I think I watched my play more. My actors would always tweak something that would surprise even me, but I did listen carefully to the audience’s reactions at my favorite parts, particularly Sean’s entrance as All-Action Man.
Bhikha: During each of the performances, I stayed at the back of the theater, barely breathing and just watching the show. I laughed the hardest at the jokes, and I was in tune with the show the whole time. I felt like I was having an out of body experience – that was my hard work shining on stage!
OOC: How did you put your special stamp on your production? Agrawal: I think every director naturally puts their special stamp on a production in the way that they work with the performers to tell a story. Every director has their own vision of what they want to communicate to the audience, what message they want to impart. The crew in particular helped me with my vision of time passing through the series of blind dates. Every vignette took place during a specific month that required changing the background, the centerpiece, the costumes. It took a lot of tech practice, but in the end it looked exactly like what I had pictured in my head. Props to the crew!
Woods: I honestly don’t think I needed to add anything to the play. It was pretty much in line with my personality from the beginning: charmingly and wittily innocent but not really,with some attitude about being passed over.I say my insults with a smile, and so did Peter Horsler when he wrote Christmas Incorporated.
Bhikha: I created the ambience for the set, and I chose some of my favorite songs to be featured as instrumentals throughout the show. I also added some signature movements.
OOC: Do you plan to continue in show business? Agrawal: What’s great about show business is that you can be an actor and still have a career outside of show business. I definitely plan to continue with theater and acting in college. There are so many opportunities, both small and large, that it’s pretty hard to limit yourself.
Woods: I’m not sure. I plan to continue acting and doing improv comedy in college, but I don’t have the rest of my life after that planned out very thoroughly.
Bhikha: If only! I’m actually going to major in business and do some interning in fashion design. I love performing and directing, and hopefully I’ll be able to continue that in the future.
OOC: Are you choosing your college for its performing arts department? Agrawal: I am looking at the performing arts departments in many universities, but as there are so many theater opportunities in college — through majors, minors, clubs — it’s easy to be involved in the performing arts almost anywhere you go.
Woods: That’s the second consideration in my criteria. I am not going to study theater, though I might minor in it. I want to major in history. However, I do look at the schools’ performing arts, making sure they have a lot of opportunities to act in plays and do improv.
Bhikha: I am not choosing my college for its performing arts department; however, I do plan to make the most of the performing arts department at the college I attend.
Sophomore Rohan Bopardikar has been selected to attend the Hugh O’Brian Youth Leadership Conference (HOBY) at UC Davis this June 18 – 20. Classmate Sarika Asthanawill also attend if space allows.
The HOBY conference, a leading youth leadership organization which sponsors conferences annually across the U.S., was founded by actor Hugh O’Brian, famous for his depiction of Wyatt Earp on television in the 1950s. O’Brian was inspired by German doctor Albert Schweitzer who said, “The most important thing in education is to teach young people to think for themselves.”
Bopardikar and Asthana were selected through an application and interview process by Kevin Williamson, dean of students, and Matthew Harley, sophomore class dean. Harley commented, “Both are very strong candidates who would benefit greatly from this program and benefit Harker upon their return.”
Selection criteria included, among other things, outstanding communication skills, creative problem solving, courage to speak out for one’s beliefs and participation in community service activities.
Previous HOBY participants include James Seifert and Julian Wise, both Gr. 11.
Alumni from the classes of 2006, ’07, ’08 and ’09 visited the Saratoga campus on Jan. 7 for the alumni relations department’s Home for the Holidays event. More than 100 alumni were in attendance, along with more than 30 faculty and staff members. Visiting alumni got to meet up with fellow graduates, current students and faculty over snacks. Chris Nikoloff, head of school, made a special appearance to talk about the important role that alumni play in the Harker community. Joe Rosenthal, director of advancement, was on hand to dedicate the large covering that now rests above the outdoor lunch area, which was gifted to the school by the parents of the 2009 senior class.
Christina Yan, director of alumni relations, was pleased to see so many past and present students enjoying themselves. “I was so pleased with the turnout,” she said, “and I was really happy to be able to put faces to names.”
Upper school music teacher Susan Nace, who also directs Cantilena and advises Guys’ Gig, will be on the edge of her seat come Grammy Award night January 31 – and for good reason. Last month, she and the rest of the San Francisco Symphony Chorus were nominated for the Best Choral Performance award for their live recording of “Symphony of a Thousand,” part of Gustav Mahler’s Symphony No. 8 in E flat Major. Produced under the direction of San Francisco Symphony conductor Michael Tilson Thomas and choral director Ragnar Bohlin, the recording was made during live performances in Davies Symphony Hall in November 2008. The recording has also been nominated for Best Classical Album and Best Engineered Classical Album awards. A short video with behind the scenes footage and insights from the recording can be viewed at “A Universe of Sound: Recording Mahler’s Symphony No. 8.”
New Year’s Weekend:
In Los Angeles, seven Lincoln-Douglas debaters and seven Public Forum teams braved the morning New Year’s Day traffic to compete in the first debate tournament of 2010. Five of the Public Forum teams advanced to elimination rounds: Revanth Kosaraju and Ishan Taneja, both Gr. 10, as well as Benjamin Chen and Kristi Lui, both Gr. 11, made it to the top 15 while junior Justine Liu and sophomore Akshay Jagadeesh lost on a 2-1 decision in quarterfinals.
Earning their second bid to the Tournament of Champions, sophomores Rohan Bopardikar and Daryl Neubieser were eliminated in semifinals but have completed their qualification to the Tournament of Champions. This is the earliest a sophomore-sophomore team has ever qualified in the season.
Hilbrich and Enea reclaimed Harker’s title of Public Forum champions by winning the tournament. This is also their second TOC bid, qualifying them to the Tournament of Champions in May.
December: In December, Hilbrich and Enea bookended their holiday break by going to Minnesota to compete in the Blake School tournament and Public Forum Round Robin. Eliminated in quarterfinals at the regular tournament on Saturday, the duo fought through competition at the Round Robin to make it to the final round of the Sunday competition. Although they lost the final round on a 3-2 decision, Hilbrich was named the top speaker of the tournament.
After finishing their finals, Lincoln-Douglas debaters headed to the East Bay to compete against some of the toughest West Coast debaters in their event. Roshni Bhatnagar, Gr. 11, made it to elimination rounds of the varsity division, finishing in the top 32 in competition. She was named the 15th best speaker at the tournament. In the junior varsity division, Emily Wang, Gr. 9, ranked high enough in the preliminary rounds to “bye” through the first elimination round. Wang ended up placing in the top eight of the tournament and was named the second-best speaker in her division.
At a tournament held in San Diego, junior Aditya Parige made his season debut on the national circuit, fighting through a large preliminary field in Humorous Interpretation to advance to the semifinal round. Not satisfied with just being in semifinals, Parige outperformed his peers to make it to the final round where he ended the tournament with the fifth place trophy.
In San Jose, four Harker students went undefeated at the Lincoln-Douglas novice league tournament: Eric Kong, Gr. 10 and Kevin Susai, Arhum Siddiqui and Apri Tang, all Gr. 9.
November: A group of 19 students traveled to the suburbs of Chicago to compete in the largest national tournament of the fall. Michael Tsai, Gr. 11, continued his Congressional Debate success by advancing to the semifinal round of Student Congress. Hilbrich and Enea made it to the quarterfinal round of the Public Forum division.
Competing at the Fall Individual Events league tournament in Milpitas, Howard Lio, Gr. 11,advanced to the semifinal round of Humorous Interpretation. In the Public Forum varsity division, the following teams went undefeated: Mark Roh, Gr. 12 and James Du, Gr. 11; Liu and Jagadeesh; and Kosaraju and Taneja.
Earning their first bids to the Public forum Tournament of Champions, the teams of junior Ziad Jawadi and sophomore Aakash Jagadeesh as well as Enea and Akshay Jagadeesh made it to the round of 16 at the Apple Valley tournament in Minnesota.
The middle school Writing Mentor Program is off to a great start this year. Created last year, the program has expanded a good deal since its inception and currently includes 18 upper school mentors selected via teacher recommendations and personal interviews. One of the most interesting aspects of the program is that it is driven by middle school students who want to improve their writing, rather than parental involvement.
In order to be considered for the program, students in Gr. 6-8 must send an e-mail explaining why they want to join to program director Patricia Lai, Gr. 8 English teacher. Upon being selected, middle school students work on a variety of topics including personal narratives, short persuasive essays, descriptive essays and expository paragraphs, depending on their individual needs.
Rather than being remedial, Lai states that this program “provides enrichment opportunities for students wanting to improve their writing skills.” When asked about the benefits of the program, mentor Timothy Chou, Gr. 11,commented that he believes “having good writing skills can vastly improve one’s life by helping one express ideas in a clearer way.”
Recently, upper school Japanese students had a visit from a professional calligrapher from Kamakura, Japan. Shoko Kazama visited Harker once before, three years ago. After introducing the students to the three brushes and three styles of calligraphy, she introduced the theme of this year’s lesson, “heart.” The finished works will be posted in the Main Hall soon.