Favorite School Story:
Perhaps my favorite story from school was the story told in volumes through Choir, Marching Band, and Theatre. I still see it a profound blessing and honor to have participated so fully in so many activities in all these departments. Performing Art will always be my favorite thing to get caught up in!
Choir brought with it so many maturing experiences and memories. I remember my Junior Year in Chamber Singers, and all the friends I made and grew to know even more. At the Chamber Singers retreat during my Junior Year, I remember telling scary stories, watching the cleaned up version of V for Vendetta for the first time, and causing a riot of laughter at every word or move I made! One memory that I remember more vivid than any other however, is the strong unity and powerful oneness we had with each other. During the retreat, we played a game where we were all lying down on the floor without any physical or visual contact. Our task was to count as high as we could without giving any cue to anybody else to count after the previous number. Mr. Wilson taught me a lesson that day that I'm realizing more than ever in my years after High School, that consistent patience, and giving and taking from yourself and a group generously to get to the goal of counting as high as you can, is the only way to get things done with strength and unity. Mr. Wilson is such a positive influence in my life. The lessons learned through painfully waiting, and joyfully excelling in Choir will always stay with me. I hope to have this same effect on others someday.
Marching Band:
Mr. Garvin, my original Band Director for Freshman Year, was like a father for me. In coming to High School, there was so much stress and anxiety for what I would have to adjust to and everything new I would have to learn. It has always been a relief to be a part of Marching Band, because this is a place that I always know will never change. The only thing I looked forward to were the grueling after school practices and the laser guided discipline I would learn, all the while knowing and embracing the joyful and beyond memorable times of success and failure. The discipline and love I put into my heartfelt and dutiful work today, was gained and nurtured and harnessed in CHS Marching Band. My favorite story here is the entire experience of going to Las Vegas. Never again in my High School career (except maybe the International Thespian Festival) would I experience the same amount of fun, freedom, and amazing Music that came from the Las Vegas trip. After raising so much money, the Band packed its bags and brought our show on the road to Las Vegas. The Flying Dutchman was our show that year, and we were extremely confident in our effort to make it shine in Nevada. I enjoyed the bus ride up, seeing all the lightning and the beautiful desert, making the pitstop to fill up on gas and much needed food! And the seniors. Oh man, the seniors my freshman year were so hilarious and mature! They always seemed like 20 year olds stuck in 17-18 year old bodies! To this day, I have never seen more mature seniors that have made a difference in my life than the ones of my Freshman year. Needless to say, we did excellent in Las Vegas. The memories were countless, and let's just say I'll let what happened in Vegas stay there. :-)
Theatre:
My main experience with Theatre for the majority of my life has been at Citrus College, but the most memorable experiences with Theatre have been at CHS. My Sophomore Thespian Big Buddy, Nestor Romero, was such a role model to me. I learned something profound from him that I have passed on to my Sophomore little buddy, Mina Bloom, and that is: Get things done as quick as you can in the Theatre. Become a Thespian as quick as you can, because time is always running out. In looking back, I didn't become a Thespian that year regrettably, but the year that I did, my Junior Year, was by far one of my very favorites. Before going off of Nestor, I must include how influential he still is to my progress, and my desire to progress in Juggling. Everybody in School knew Nestor as the Juggler. I'm surprised they didn't do a Yearbook special on him! I still have the video (somewhere) of him juggling 8 Clubs in the Theatre at Lunch. I remember how awesome we both felt after seeing it! Ever since Nestor, I have wanted to progress in Juggling and make it a talent that I can pleasingly put right next to Music.
My Junior Year in Theatre was the most influential in my initial attempts to major in it in College. It was the year that I starred in my first play, and even more, as a principal character! After so much learning, and lessons kept close to me even today beaten in by Mrs. Elhai's tone of "You need this, whether you want it or not", I came to embody the character of Mr. Dussel in The Diary of Anne Frank. Andrew Steinsapir, Anne-Marie Pietersma, Andrew Lindvall, Byrd Chavez, Kristina Leopold, Stephanie Inglese, and Katie Schiff were the Cast. I learned so much from their loving influence, and I gained much Joy and happiness in getting to reconnect with some Friends who had to leave Orchestra at El Roble. One of my favorite memories from Anne Frank was that this show was completely extra-curricular! The one thing keeping me from classes was the time taken out of Choir and Band, so I was extremely happy to do my best after School every week. And who could forget Mrs. Elhai taking us to her church at Temple Beth Israel? I'll never miss the great Jewish exposure she gave me, from how prayers were chanted, to the applications put in the show. The Joy of Theatre continued in California Suite for The One Act Play Festival. I have been blessed with such a positive and memorable account of Theatre in my life. I still love the comfort I get in picking up a script and playing the various choices in my mind. Junior Year ended with a great award for my love of Theatre: Thespianship, and The Best First Performance Award. These memories pushed me across another summer into Senior Year. A great friend of mine I had the pleasure to be her Big Buddy for came back this year. Her name was Mina Bloom. From beginnings coming to endings, and from new duties realized as a Thespian, I took Senior Year by Joyful storm. My greatest story to tell is Starmites, because it will forever remain a dream come true that was never realized until Senior Year. From October's casting of Starmites, to the grueling and confusing months ahead for its production, I came to end High School being reminded of what has always mattered most to me: my Friends. From preconceptions being falsified to the strongest of bonds being formed, I was truly blessed to end my High School years reflecting on the loves that have always driven me forward. Starmites included hilarious Theatre (my favorite) and glorious, complicated Music (my favorite). Mixed in with everlasting family, and realizing meanings that meant something deep to all of us, Starmites was the only way I could have ended as Joyful a High School story as mine. Countless stories deserve to be told, but perhaps this one will ring true the most. When we got accepted into the International Thespian Festival, we all felt like the biggest stars in the world. Preparing to go, and putting on an encore performance for all of Claremont gave us the confidence and Joy in knowing we were "the show" of Claremont. We came to Lincoln, Nebraska in a 98 degree, showering mess, but we came back ready to move on, and to remember the love and the Music that must always accompany the best things in Life.
I loved High School, and am so grateful for its lasting influence on me. I truly know now that the things established and cherished in the days of youth are the things that stick and are mastered throughout your life. I hope I can keep the best and more :-)
