More Tuck Pics

Tuck Everlasting is the story of a girl named Winnie and a family who she meets, the Tucks. The Tucks have a secret, they're immortal.They drank water from a spring that was actually a fountain of youth. Till the end of time, they will stay that way. Winnie must choose between being immortal and being with Jesse or following the circle of life and dying someday. The Tucks try to teach her how she shouldn't fear death, how they would give anything to die. It teaches the importance and understanding of life and death.It shows that you should not fear death, but to fear an unlived life.

Festival Cast

Tuck Everlasting goes to festival!

We are almost ready to get on the bus and go to the Festival. We have a great script, wonderful costumes an almost portable and detailed set and wonderful actors and amazing stage crew ( yay Jackson!) We will perform for family meeeting 5/6 on FRI MAY 15th and evening performance on MAY 19th 2009 at 6PM.















Prospect Hill Academy Charter School - Drama Club, presents “Tuck Everlasting” a novel by Natalie Babbitt
Original adaptation for stage by Mark Frattaroli and excerpted and adapted for Drama Festival 2009 by Branigan LaCount.

The cast and crew will meet at PHA at 6:45 AM on MAY 9th to take our play to the the 15th Annual Middle School Drama Festival. We will pack up all costumes,props, and sets and travel by bus to Walsh Junior High School www.framingham.k12.ma.us 301 Brook St Framingham, MA 01701 (508) 626-9180

We will not get home until the evening sometime after 7 pm. We are most grateful for the extraordinary generosity and genius of Natalie Babbitt. She gave us her script, her permission to mold her play to fit drama fest rules and her blessing. All this free of charge in appreciation of the work we do at PHA.

And we are most appreciative of the support of Trevor Wrankmore, the amazing kindness and flexibility of PHA parent and professional costumer, Liz Perlman of Costumeworks and Sheila Leavitt, cardboard wizard. Also a shout out and big thanks to Luis Rivera and Joe Harris who have gone over and above to help us.

Tuck Everlasting listen

See the link below or click on the picture here.

Click on this link to hear Tuck Everlasting read aloud.
http://cdn4.libsyn.com/phaperformingarts/Tuck_Everlasting.mp3?nvb=20090419204239&nva=20090420205239&t=089e8f05c81f9322869b2

Drama Fest and Spring Play Cast

Tuck Everlasting Casts
Thank you all for your great work at the open casting calls this week! Ms. Dooley and I appreciated seeing your wonderful talent and the time you took to share it with us. We are planning to perform this play in two ways, so we have two casts: the Festival Cast will perform at the drama festival in May and the School Cast will perform at PHA soon after the festival. We are also doing some neat movement and vocal work with the Voices, but you will hear more about that during rehearsals. We are excited to give everyone the chance to work on different parts and hope that each student will enjoy working on the play!

It is important that each cast member is able to commit to being at rehearsals, so we ask that you take February Vacation to have a great time, but also to really make sure you will be able to do your best with rehearsals and the performances. IF YOU WANT TO BE PART OF THE PLAY YOU MUST RETURN YOUR PERMISSION SLIP, SIGNED BY A PARENT TO MS. DOOLEY OR MS. LACOUNT BY TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 24 (RIGHT AFTER VACATION). We need to get started as soon as possible, and we need to know who we are going to be working with.

Congratulations to you all and have a fun and safe February vacation! If you have any questions, please ask Ms. Dooley or Ms. LaCount.


Festival Cast
Tuck: Catello Batinelli
Mae: Garlyn Colas
Jesse: Justin von Bosau
Miles: Elizabeth Pierre
Winnie: Rebecca DiTucci
Grandma: Illyana DePierro
Stranger: Alyssa Wong
Constable: Olivia Porte
Voices: (Captain) Lyndsay, (Captain) Crystal, Hannah, Joelle, Lorena, Jackson Manz-seik, Rebecca, Emily, Imani, Grace

School Cast
Tuck: Hannah Eyoub
Mae: Joelle Bueno
Jesse: Lorena Cruz
Miles: Jackson Manz-seik
Winnie: Gabby Ferriera
Grandma: Emily Goldstein -McGowan
Stranger: Imani Abraham
Constable: Grace Montiero
Voices: (Captain) Lyndsay, (Captain) Crystal, Catello, Garlyn, Justin, Elizabeth, Gabby, Illyana, Alyssa, Olivia

Some performances of poems

Go here and see student examples from http://www.poetryoutloud.org/ a great site to find more poems. Scroll way down to see 2008 Champion, Shawntay A. Henry recited Frederick Douglass by Robert E. Hayden
Henry has a wonderful stage presence—her bright articulation and deliberate pacing provides an authoritative take on this elegy. Her performance is understated yet inspired, not overdramatic. Her emphatic phrasing gives a quiet dignity and strength to this poem's elemental language and lofty subject matter.Below: Alicia Keys performs her poem POW "I'm a prisoner Of words unsaid..." for full text scroll way down




A student from PHA Upper School was here in March 2008, as students from across Massachusetts participated in the 3rd annual Poetry Out Loud National Recitation Contest.


I'm a prisoner
Of words unsaid
Just lonely feelings
Locked away in my head
I trap myself further
Every time I stay quiet
I should start to speak
But I stop and stay silent
And now I've made
My own hard bed
Inside a prison of words unsaid

I am a P.O.W.
Not a prisoner of war
A prisoner of words
Like a soldier
I'm a fighter
Yet only a puppet
Mostly I only say
What you wanna hear
Could you take it if I came clear?
Or would you rather see me
Stoned on a drug of complacency and compromise
M.I.A.
I guess that's what I am
Scraping this cold earth
For a piece of myself
For peace in myself

It'd be easier if you put me in jail
If you locked me away
I'd have someone to blame
But these bars of steel are of my making
They surround my mind
And have me shaking
My hands are cuffed behind my back
I'm a prisoner of the worst kind, in fact
A prisoner of compromise
A prisoner of compassion
A prisoner of kindness
A prisoner of expectation
A prisoner of my youth
Run too fast to be old
I've forgotten what I was told
Ain't I a sight to behold?

A prisoner of age dying to be young
To my head is my hand with a gun
And it's cold and it's hard
Cause there's nowhere to run
When you've caged youself
By holding your tongue

I'm a prisoner
Of words unsaid
Just lonely feelings
Locked away in my head
It's like solitary confinement
Every time I stay quiet
I should start to speak
But I stop and stay silent
And now I've made
My own hard bed
Inside a prison of words unsaid

Drama Club is on!

Drama Club meets on WED and FRI from 3:05PM - 4:15PM We are excited and so lucky to have Branigan LaCount, an Emerson College senior in Theater Education join us for Drama Club as well as performing arts classes. Ms. LaCount, a graduate of PHA, has been teaching theater since her senior year in high school when she taught some 2nd graders at the LowerSchool, who are now students in the 6th grade. She will be with us until JUNE. She is a fine actor and singer and brings many gifts to our work.

Drama Club members are reading plays as we look for a piece to bring to the Middle School Drama Fest in MAY. We must commit to a play by FEB 15.

FRI drama club will be for 7th and 8th graders ( 5th and 6th graders may attend club on FRI if okayed by director) We also play theater and improv games. Students may need to come to both rehearsals closer to performance date. Looking for an organized person to be the Stage Manager

Students Perform at First Night Boston 2009

Joelle and three other PHA students performed at Boston's First Night Children's Festival with Andrea Lovett Storytelling Ensemble. Check in at 5th and 6th grade blogs for more videos.