The nominations for the 2012 Stage Top Honor Awards were announced Monday, and the cast and staff of the Conservatory’s spring musical, “The Drowsy Chaperone,” received 11 nominations. Fifteen schools participated, and Harker received the fifth most nominations.
The Top Honor Awards recognizes outstanding work by high school musical theater programs. Four judges, each one a theater professional, attend performances at each of the participating schools and complete a lengthy and detailed evaluation, which then is passed along to each show’s director. Harker’s director, Laura Lang-Ree, received the adjudications last week and called the cast together after school to share the positive and constructive feedback. “Students receive over 75 pages of notes from outside professionals,” Lang-Ree said, offering feedback on everything from the ushers to each cast member and every technical element of the show.
Nominees for best actor/actress and best show are invited to perform at the awards ceremony, which this year will be on June 4 at the California Theater in downtown San Jose. The winners of the best actor/actress category will win a scholarship to New York University’s Tisch School for the Arts, if they are accepted as students there.
While excited by the nominations, Lang-Ree is firm that, “We produce musicals so that we can learn from and enjoy the process – we are not in it to win a prize. That’s our philosophical stand, as we are always going to do our best, grow, stretch, fail, succeed and try again, regardless of whether we choose to be a part of an adjudication or competition.” Lang-Ree and musical director Catherine Snider were gratified by the best show and best chorus nominations, in particular, as those categories most clearly represent the goals of the Conservatory – a tight, well-rehearsed acting, dancing and singing ensemble in which each character is well-developed, everyone’s energy is equally high, and the chorus is an integral part of the play as a whole. “Nominated, win or not, we strive to make the process of performing as rich and valuable as possible, and therein lies the joy of rehearsal, process and performance,” Lang-Ree said.
“The Drowsy Chaperone” received the following nominations: overall production; chorus; leading actress (Noel Witcosky, grade 12); leading actor (Tristan Killeen, grade 12); supporting actor (Govinda Dasu, grade 12); supporting actress (Lauren Pinzás, grade 12); featured actress (Cristina Jerney, grade 11); direction (Lang-Ree); musical direction (Snider); choreography (Katie O’Bryon); and sound design (Brian Larsen).
Rohan Chandra, grade 11, recently received the news that he has been selected as a tenor for the All-National Honor Mixed Choir by the National Association for Music Education (NAfME). Chandra will participate in a three-day program this June that culminates in a concert at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington, D.C., on June 24, during which he will perform with other top student musicians selected from all over the country.
A number of Harker students placed well in the 20th annual United States Open Music Competition (USOMC) recently held in Oakland.
Since 1992, the competition has worked to promote the best of classical talent among young musicians, including all aspects of classical repertoire in solo, duet, ensemble and concerto events.
The USOMC bills itself as an organization “dedicated to creating an environment where local, national and international students of all levels strive to achieve musical excellence.” The organization continues to grow from increasing public support and is known for maintaining the high quality of a top-notch piano competition.
Among the Harker students who placed well in the respected competition were: Kai-Ming Ang, grade 4,Kai-Siang Ang, grade 7, Amy Jin, grade 6, Andrew Jin, grade 9, Sanjana Kaundinya, grade 9, Alexander Mo, grade 7, Brandon Mo, grade 6, and Andy Semenza, grade 6.
This year, The Harker School has two students accepted into the junior high All-State Band: Cynthia Hao and Kristen Park, both grade 8. David Hart, instrumental music teacher for grades 6-8, said “Hao made it into the Concert Band while Park made the highest group, the Symphonic Band.” Having two students accepted to the All-State Band is a Harker first, as is having a student in the Symphonic Band. “It is very exciting,” Hart said.
For the last 52 years, the California Band Directors Association (CBDA) has hosted the California All-State Honor Bands. Once each year, the CBDA conducts auditions, which are held all across the state of California, and the highest caliber students from both junior high and high school are chosen to make up the All-State Honor Bands.
This article was originally published in the Fall 2011 Harker Quarterly.
The Harker Conservatory completed its second appearance at the largest arts festival in the world, the Edinburgh Festival Fringe, with a successful run of “Pippin” in August.
In 1947, eight uninvited theatrical groups descended on the newly formed Edinburgh International Festival, performing “on the fringes.” The trend caught on, and in 1959 the Fringe became official. In 1994, the American High School Theatre Festival (AHSTF) formed and instituted a competition to choose and facilitate the appearance of high-caliber secondary school drama departments at this mecca of arts festivals.
The Harker Conservatory was first nominated for the Fringe by now-defunct American Musical Theater of San Jose back in 2006. After an in-depth application process and review of years of Harker shows, Harker was selected from more than 300 applicants as one of 38 schools to appear under the AHSTF banner, and “Urinetown: The Musical” performed to impressive crowds in 2007.
Laura Lang-Ree, chair of the performing arts department K-12 and the spring musical’s director, has set a goal of attending the Fringe once every four years, and in 2010 Harker was one of 45 schools accepted. Choosing just the right show is a challenge, Lang-Ree says: “It’s about finding the right mix of sophistication and edginess. The Fringe is not the place to bring something that is the equivalent of vanilla yogurt. It’s got to zing, it’s got to grab the attention of thousands of potential audience members, and it’s got to be memorable.”
Preparing for the Fringe takes a full year, not the least of which is trimming the show to fit into a strict 90-minute format. The set must accompany the actors as well, putting additional demands on Paul Vallerga, Harker’s innovative set designer. In addition to Lang-Ree and Vallerga, musical director Catherine Snider, production manager Brian Larsen and chaperone extraordinaire Chris Daren ironed out the details and accompanied the cast.
Once settled in their dorm rooms on the campus of the University of Edinburgh, the cast’s adventure began in earnest. A packed schedule of rehearsals, publicity, shows and shopping ensued. Fundraising efforts during the school year meant that Lang-Ree was able to arrange for several group meals together and attendance at 12 professional shows of varying genres.
One highlight was the relationship Harker developed with an American improv troupe called “Baby Wants Candy.” They create an hour-long musical based on a title suggested by an audience member, and the “Pippin” cast met them during publicity times and promised to attend each other’s shows. The BWC troupe gave a shout out from the stage to the Harker group at their performance, and were gracious enough to arrange a special workshop at the dorms for Harker and another California high school.
But of course the highlight of the trip was performing “Pippin” at the beautiful Church Hill Theatre. Participating AHSTF schools support each other by attending at least four other high school shows, so the challenge for each school is to fill the theater’s seats with “regular” Festival-goers in addition to the high school students. Each school is allotted one 20-minute slot on a small stage on Edinburgh’s main street, the Royal Mile. “Pippin” cast members braved the rain in full costume and gathered a huge crowd with their opening number, after which they took to the Mile with a three-card Monty game whose trick card was printed with all the “Pippin” information. The cast was able to “trick” locals, foreigners, other performers and, on one notable occasion, two local police officers into choosing the info card. The hard work paid off with approximately 240 people attending one of the four performances of “Pippin,” including many of the other high schools who weren’t required to attend but who had heard the buzz.
The demands of mounting a Fringe show led to the cast reaching deep within themselves for stamina, flexibility, humor and grace under pressure, and they all rose to the occasion beautifully. The final performance had 125 people in the audience (Fringe shows average seven people), and Lang-Ree was surrounded by other American directors asking, “How did you do this?” Lang-Ree recalled, “This moment was a professional highlight for me; such a huge compliment to the cast and crew and an even bigger compliment to the entire performing arts department at Harker as our kids really are a reflection of their K through Life experience.”
An online arts group reviewed the show, giving it four stars and writing, “An excellent production
of ‘Pippin’ by an enthusiastic and well-drilled cast.” The final accolade came from the head of AHSTF, who asked the Harker cast to provide the only performance at their closing ceremonies. One final time, the stalwart cast donned makeup and costumes and wowed the 800 people in attendance.
Lang-Ree mused, “We were selected by AHSTF as one of the best and brightest musical theater programs in America, so I think it’s very important that what we bring to the Fringe – artistically, technically, creatively – be a home run. This event is not a ‘dress rehearsal’ for theater life – the Fringe is the real deal.”
Jeffrey Kwong, grade 12, has been accepted to the National High School Honors Orchestra as a cellist. Kwong will be the first Harker student represented in the orchestra, and in late March, will join nearly 100 other musicians from across the United States for a performance at the National Orchestra Festival in Atlanta.
Kwong has been involved in Harker’s music program since grade 6, and is also a Conservatory Certificate candidate. Orchestra director Chris Florio said, “Jeffrey has been a tremendous player in our orchestra program for the last seven years. He placed first last year in a state competition run by ASTA (America String Teachers Association) and is a member of the San Francisco Symphony Youth Orchestra along with five other Harker students.”
The Harker Conservatory completed its second appearance at the largest arts festival in the world, the Edinburgh Festival Fringe, with a successful run of “Pippin” in August.
In 1947, eight uninvited theatrical groups descended on the newly formed Edinburgh International Festival, performing “on the fringes.” The trend caught on, and in 1959 the Fringe became official. In 1994, the American High School Theatre Festival (AHSTF) formed and instituted a competition to choose and facilitate the appearance of high-caliber secondary school drama departments at this mecca of arts festivals.
The Harker Conservatory was first nominated for the Fringe by the now-defunct American Musical Theater of San Jose back in 2006. After an in-depth application process and review of years of The Harker School shows, Harker was selected from more than 300 applicants as one of 38 schools to appear under the AHSTF banner, and “Urinetown: The Musical” performed to impressive crowds in 2007.
Laura Lang-Ree, chair of the performing arts department K-12, has set a goal of attending the Fringe once every four years, and in 2010 Harker was one of 45 schools accepted. Choosing just the right show is a challenge, Lang-Ree says: “It’s about finding the right mix of sophistication and edginess. The Fringe is not the place to bring something that is the equivalent of vanilla yogurt. It’s got to zing, it’s got to grab the attention of thousands of potential audience members and it’s got to be memorable.”
Preparing for the Fringe takes a full year, not the least of which is trimming the show to fit into a strict 90-minute format. The set must accompany the actors as well, putting additional demands on Paul Vallerga, Harker’s innovative set designer.
When the reworking was complete, the set, costumes and props were divided up among the cast’s luggage, and the troupe arrived in London for some sight-seeing, a workshop at the reconstructed Globe Theatre and a performance of “Billy Elliott” in London’s West End theater district.
After two days in London, the cast boarded what they fondly dubbed “The Hogwarts Express,” the train from King’s Cross Station to Edinburgh – known to this generation for being the station at which Harry Potter and friends board the train to their school. An AHSTF guide met the train and escorted the cast out of the station in a slow march behind a bagpiper, giving an air of formality to the occasion and creating quite a stir among the other passengers.
Once settled in their dorm rooms on the campus of the University of Edinburgh, the cast’s adventure began in earnest. A packed schedule of rehearsals, publicity, shows and shopping ensued. Fundraising efforts during the school year meant that Lang-Ree was able to arrange for several group meals together as well as attendance at 12 professional shows of varying genres.
One highlight was the relationship Harker developed with an American improv troupe called “Baby Wants Candy.” They create an hour-long musical based on a title suggested by an audience member, and the “Pippin” cast met them during publicity times and promised to attend each other’s shows. The BWC troupe gave a shout out from the stage to the Harker group at their performance, and were gracious enough to arrange a special workshop at the dorms for Harker and another California high school.
AHSTF arranged for a day’s outing to Stirling Castle via a beautiful coach ride through the Trossachs, Scotland’s lower highlands; they also gave students tickets to the Edinburgh Military Tattoo, an extravagant celebration of the U.K.’s many regiments from around the world; and arranged for them to go to a ceilidh, where all the AHSTF students learned traditional Scottish dancing.
But of course the highlight of the trip was performing “Pippin” at the beautiful Church Hill Theatre. Participating AHSTF schools support each other by attending at least four other high school shows, so the challenge for each school is to fill the theater’s seats with “regular” Festival-goers in addition to the high school students.
In addition to the show, each school is allotted one 20-minute slot on a small stage on Edinburgh’s main street, The Royal Mile. “Pippin” cast members braved the rain in full costume and gathered a huge crowd with their opening number, after which they took to the Mile with a three-card Monty game whose trick card was printed with all the “Pippin” information. The cast was able to “trick” locals, foreigners, other performers and, in one notable occasion, two local police officers into choosing the info card, and the hard work paid off with approximately 240 people attending one of the four performances of “Pippin,” including many of the other high schools who weren’t required to attend but who had heard the buzz.
The demands of mounting a Fringe show led to the cast reaching deep within themselves for stamina, flexibility, humor and grace under pressure, and they all rose to the occasion beautifully. The final performance had 125 people in the audience (Fringe shows average seven people), and Lang-Ree was surrounded by other American directors asking, “How did you do this?” Lang-Ree recalled, “This moment was a professional highlight for me; such a huge compliment to the cast and crew and an even bigger compliment to the entire performing arts department at Harker as our kids really are a reflection of their K through Life experience.”
An online arts group reviewed the show, giving it four stars and writing, “An excellent production of Pippin by an enthusiastic and well-drilled cast.” The final accolade came from the head of AHSTF, who asked the Harker cast to provide the only performance at their closing ceremonies. One final time, the stalwart cast donned makeup and costumes and wowed the 800 people in attendance.
Lang-Ree mused, “We were selected by AHSTF as one of the best and brightest musical theater programs in America, so I think it’s very important that what we bring to the Fringe – artistically, technically, creatively – be a home run. This event is not a ‘dress rehearsal’ for theater life – the Fringe is the real deal.”
Congratulations to rising junior Michaela Kastelman, a rising Junior, who has been accepted into the extremely prestigious and challenging California Summer School for the Arts in Valencia. This four-week intensive program is designed to help augment her dance and movement skills. After sending in her audition tape, she beat out other California applicants in grades 8 to 12.
At the camp, she will study dance history and choreography as well as refine her skills on the dance floor.
The middle school grade 7 and 8 orchestras and Vivace choir performed impressively this spring, each earning awards at performing arts festivals. The orchestras performed at the California Music Educators Association festival in May and, for the first time, both of the orchestras were awarded Unanimous Superior ratings to recognize their skill and dedication their crafts. This double award has come after a year dedicated to improving all of the students’ individual abilities and their work as a group.
Vivace traveled to a middle and high school choir festival in Anaheim in April. The group performed three pieces in front of an audience and a panel of judges. Their performance of classical, jazz and traditional/spiritual pieces earned them high praise from the judges. Dave Hart, middle school music teacher, said, “I was blown away by their musicianship and ability to blend.” Hart wasn’t the only one the group impressed; the judges recognized them for their strong team effort, awarding them a gold medal and one of the highest middle school choir scores. After the performances, the groups were invited to celebrate their hard work at Disneyland.
Let’s congratulate the groups on a fantastic end to a year that, according to Hart, was dedicated to “learning music and having a great time.”
Kristen Park, grade 7, has been selected to the 2011 California All-State Concert Band. Park, who plays the B-flat soprano clarinet, competed against more than a thousand applicants vying for a prestigious spot in the band.
“Kristen is very musical and self-driven, and she has improved greatly throughout the year,” said David Hart, director of the middle school’s orchestra and jazz bands. “It does not surprise me at all that she is one of the top middle school clarinetists in California.”
To audition, applicants must prepare complicated musical pieces and scales, depending on the instrument. They are judged on intonation, tone, rhythm, technique, interpretation, balance and overall performance.
Park is the first grade 7 student from Harker to ever make the all-state band. Congratulations!