Students to Perform Best-Loved Music Tonight

The Ledyard High School Music Department invites friends and family to “An Evening of Rodgers and Hammerstein.” Students in the Ledyard Musical Theater group will perform highlights from the composers’ musicals. The shows will be held at Gales Ferry’s United Methodist Church tonight, May 19, and Friday, May 20, at 7:30 pm.

The cast is made up of only a few students. According to department chair Russell Hammond, about 30 students auditioned for Ledyard Musical Theater. Only eight of them will be singing in this show. “It’s a select group,” Hammond said.

The chosen students are Breanna Browne, Chelsey Fuller, Cedar Nelson, Justin Carroll, Grace Chattin, KC Wilson, Ian Maxwell, and Forest Smith.

Since their selection, these singers have worked hard. Hammond said that the group has practiced once a week since February. This week they have been polishing their act and rehearsing. "They’re all very good kids, very good singers, and very serious about this,” Hammond said.

The music they’ll be performing comes from the work of Rodgers and Hammerstein. Hammond calls it a revue of the composers. “A revue is taking the music of a composer, and all the music and all the shows, and putting them all into one show,” he said. The concert will include songs from the pair’s musicals, such as “Oklahoma,” “The Sound of Music,” and “South Pacific.”

“Rodgers and Hammerstein are iconic figures in the world of musical theater,” Hammon said. “They’re ubiquitous. High Schools all over the country do their musicals.” Some of their works are also being revived on Broadway. “It’s music the kids should be exposed to, that the audience should be exposed to,” he said.

Despite the composers’ fame, Hammond expects a small audience. He said that most of those who come to high school concerts and plays are friends and family members of performers. Because the cast is so small, these might be few. That is why the show is being held at the United Methodist Church, which has a smaller theater than the school.

Neither does Hammond expect to make much money with the $5 admission fee. “We just try to break even,” he said. “It’s not a fundraiser. It’s just a chance to give kids experience with musical theater.”

Spring trip a success

Another learning experience for Ledyard’s music department was the recent trip to Washington D.C., in which 125 students went to the capital on April 14-17. Although they spent a day sightseeing, and another day at Six Flags in New Jersey, the main reason for the trip was the Festival of Music.

This festival is competition between school bands. “What happens is, you compete against whatever schools are there,” Hammond said. This year, schools came from as far away as California and Canada. “You compete in a division based on your school size, and then you compete based on the kind of choir (or band) you have.”

Hammond sees the competition as a learning opportunity. “It’s a good experience for the kids. It’s good to travel, it’s good to hear what the judges have to say. It’s good to hear other choirs and bands,” he said.

Of course, coming back with a collection of trophies is good, too. Ledyard’s Jazz Band and Festival Chorus both won second place. The Symphonic Band and Chamber Choir each won first place. The Chamber Choir also brought home the trophy for Top Overall Choir.