Last week Early Stages students had an opportunity to see Manhattan School of Music’s fabulous production of Ragtime. Like the characters in this show, our students from Harry S. Truman High School and Brooklyn Job Corp represented multiple races, ethnicities and new immigrants to New York City.
One Harry S. Truman senior was amazed by the character Sarah, who dreams of going to America, “Her voice was amazing! I really felt all the emotions the character was going through.”
Many of the Bronx Job Corp student were awestruck by the production. One student commented, “These actors are my age! Its inspiring to see them following their dreams.”
Students left the theatre discussing the play’s historic characters-like Booker T. Washington and Emma Goldman – as well as the similarities and differences between Ragtime’s New York, in the early 20th Century, and the New York they call home.
It was truly a delightful and educational evening for Early Stages students!
 Yesterday, a group of Early Stages students saw MAMMA MIA! and had a fantastic time! Here are a few of their responses:
“MAMMA MIA! was one of the best plays I have ever seen. It was a high energy play that kept you waiting for what was to come next. I would recommend this play to everyone, and I would even go back to see it again. If it was not for this play, I would never have known who ABBA was and that they had some great music. GO SEE THE PLAY!” – Jake, 9th grade
“The play was about a young lady that planned on getting married to the man of her dreams. Throughout her childhood years, she grew up with her mom being a single parent and not knowing who her father was. I could relate to her because when I was younger my father was in and out of my life, and I didn’t spent much time with him. What I loved most was the way it ended: the stage lifted up as they walked off into the moon light. I would love go see this play again because it is so uplifting. Everyone should try to go to see this play.” – Carlton, 12th grade
We are proud to have made an impact on these young people’s lives, and we look forward to bringing more students to great shows.
Have I ever mentioned how hard it is to be an adolescent? Stuck in the middle of childhood and adulthood is quite stressful. I mean, as a teenager one looks forward to being treated as an adult, not as a child. Me? I’d much rather be treated as a young person that is simply in training to be an adult.
 I have had an epiphany throughout my time here at Early Stages. My youth is gradually slipping away from me. On May 13th, (Mother’s Day for those who might have forgotten), I will be 18 years old. Not only do I have to act a little older, I feel as though I am. While interning here, my mindset has dramatically altered. In a way, this saddens me because I am the type of person to be jovial and jubilant almost always. My friends call me “Giggles” because no matter what, I am laughing and smiling. I had a care free perspective of life, but now, working and handling college stuff has enlightened me that the real world is right under my nose; it will probably swallow me whole if I don’t realize that I have many more responsibilities.
Even as I write this now, stress and fear are overwhelming me due to the immense transition that is to ensue in my life. I know that I should not worry so much and simply try my best to be a functioning addition to the adult-world, but being a kid is too fun for me. Well, though I’ll be 18, I’ll still be the youngest in the office!
That’s all for now, folks!
At Early Stages, we are proud to have given students the opportunity to see several of this year’s nominated shows.
Lysistrata Jones is nominated for Best Book of a Musical.
Clybourne Park is nominated for Best Play.
Jeremy Shamos is nominated for Best Actor in a Featured Role.
On a Clear Day You Can See Forever is nominated for
Best Performance by an Actress in a Featured Role in a Musical: Jessie Mueller.
Stick Fly is nominated for Best Actress in a Featured Role in a Play: Condola Rashad.
Peter and the Starcatcher is nominated for Best Play.
And Early Stages students have also seen The Lyons, nominated for Best Actress in a Leading Role in a Play: Linda Lavin.
Good luck to all the nominees!
 Teaching Artist Flor Bromley Flor Bromley, Early Stages Teaching Artist, has just completed a Bi-lingual Storytelling Residency with 2nd grade students in Corona, Queens at PS 19. The school is one of the largest K-5 schools with 2,000 students, 60% of whom are English Language Learners.
How has growing up in Peru effected your work as a Storyteller?
My “Storyteller master” from Peru always said that we are born storytellers; we just need to discover our inner Storyteller. I started doing Storytelling about 7 years ago in Peru, working for book publishers and the Ministry of Education. Being from Peru and an immigrant myself, I feel that many of the children, particularly at PS 19 can connect with me in a special way. My personal mission and the mission of Early Stages is to help children find their inner storyteller.
What, in your opinion, is the unique impact of the Early Stages Storytelling work on the children you’re teaching?
Early Stages has definitely opened up new ways of teaching for me. I have embraced the approach of waking up the body, voice, and imagination. The students love it because those three tools are really all you need. The structure of the residency guides my focus for each session and the Early Stages Storytelling notebook that each child receives really expands the impact of the program.
What is your philosophy about bi-lingual Storytelling?
I am a firm believer in bilingualism. I learned English when I was 4 years old in Peru and I love being able to express myself in both languages.
Bilingual Storytelling just opens a new window into learning another language. When bilingual children hear a story being told in two languages or in their native language, it really engages them in a completely different way; it gives them a chance to connect with their culture and, I think, it inspires them to learn more.
 Flor with student at PS 19 When children that are not bilingual hear a bilingual story it motivates them to learn another language. It makes them realize that stories exist in all languages.
What is your favorite story to tell?
My favorite story to tell is a fairytale called “The Frog Princess” from Russia. It’s a story about love, trust, transformation and shows that love is what moves the world, which is why I like it. As women we have often been told that we have to find our “enchanted prince”, well, what if we are enchanted as well and they need to find US? This story talks about that and about overcoming our own fears so that we can let ourselves love and be loved.
 Salutations, Forum.
Spring break is over, so we all know what that means—back to the office. Though I wish I had more time off, I just could not wait to come back and tell you all about my vacation.
For starters, I was overjoyed to have the opportunity to sleep in a few extra hours in the morning. My family had become quite frustrated with me since I made plans with my friends every day of the week. They groused that I did not spend time with them, and I simply reminded them that we live under the same roof; I was doing them a favor.
During the week, my partner invited me to a PowerWriting class. Of course I accepted the invitation being that I work in the place that initiated P.W., and I was curious as to what occurs in a P.W. class. Afterwards, we enjoyed a short break with snacks and were informed that it was time to write. We could write anything that we felt needed to be heard by the class. I was too demure to read anything, so I simply spectated. In essence, I could not focus my attention off of each reader as they approached the microphone and immersed their audience into a world of raw emotion and abstract thoughts. I was especially interested in what my partner had to say. I had assisted him write his poem for that class, so I had already known what it was about. However, when I saw him perform his piece and relive the words that were flowing from his mouth; I could not help but to be speechless. The entire class was just as speechless as I. This alone made me excited for next week’s class.
Throughout the entire week at the ES office, I was racking my brain as to what I could write about. See, my partner is an amazing writer and I feared my work could not compare to his. Whenever I was assigned to file some papers or enter data into one of the spreadsheets, I would try to extract ideas from simple words and names. It sounds strange, but I get my ideas from not-so-normal places. At the same time, I was to think of what to talk about for this week’s blog. Despite being somewhat inundated with assignments and tasks, I managed to find a way to incorporate my outside life at PW with my life as an intern at Early Stages. Though the two beings have history, it is interesting to me how they are both different. The dynamic of me as an intern at Early Stages, sitting in an office and working behind the scenes in comparison to participating in one of the programs developed by ES is absolutely different. However, I still gain an immense amount of knowledge from both. That to me is what you call learning.
 Early Stages students at A Streetcar Named Desire Early Stages students have been swept into the underbelly of New Orleans’ French Quarter in Broadway’s new revival of A Streetcar Named Desire. Interest in the play was so great that students made the effort to go even though they were on spring break.
The characters of Stella and Blanche, while older and from a different era, resonated with Early Stages students. Juana, a senior at Williamsburg High School for Architecture and Design, could even “relate to how Blanche didn’t have a place to call home anymore. I will always remember her last line which symbolized the fact that she had never really had true companions.” (For those of you who can’t recall high school English, she says “I have always depended on the kindness of strangers.”)
 Early Stages students at A Streetcar Named Desire
The themes of this play – love and death, fantasy and reality – affected several students. Al-Jameelah, a senior at Queens High School for the Sciences, learned that “A Streetcar Named Desire is the epiphany that the opposite of death is desire.” Here at Early Stages, we too had an epiphany: Sometimes all you need is a revival to come around and allow the relevance of the past to show itself once more.
It’s that time of the week again!
Just a few months ago, I was a student waiting for my tickets from Madeleine or whichever staff member was to give my teacher our tickets. Last week, I handed out the tickets. This time, I was in charge. Along side a veteran Early Stages teacher, I bestowed three groups with tickets to a preview of A Street Car Named Desire. For this handout, it was my duty to warmly welco me each group, remind them of basic theater protocol, snap a photo of them, and of course, hand them their tickets.
The day before, Madeleine notified me of how busy she was due to the fact that she was in the process of booking groups for copious shows in the following weeks. As a result, she was somewhat short staff, and called for emergency back-up. This is where I come in. Since I had prior knowledge of how ticket handout works, and Madeleine had to work another show simultaneously, my job was to steer my interim partner in the right direction as far as ticket handout goes.
In all my days as an Early Stages interm, never have I ever felt so much pressure. I feared I would not complete my task competently. However, it turns out I did a great job (if I may so myself). The next day at the office, Madeleine commended me for taking such great photos of the students in front of theater. I felt nothing but pride in myself to know that I have the ability to take on a challenging task such as handing out tickets, much less without Madeleine present.
That’s all for now! Tune in next week for my blog about my Spring Break! Have a great week, everyone!
 Early Stages students absolutely loved "Nimbaya!" Recently students and chaperones had an amazing time seeing Nimbaya!, the first all female African percussion and dance troupe. Early Stages brought groups from schools in the Bronx and Queens; for many in attendance, Nimbaya! was their first professional concert.
Everyone had a wonderful time at the performance! During the show, one little girl said, “I can’t stop dancing to this music!” All the students mentioned how much they wanted to see more concerts like Nimbaya! The experience opened up a new world of music and live performance to many of the students. Thanks to the World Music Institute for making this possible!
The Greenpoint Gazette wrote an article about Early Stages bringing students from the Williamsburg High School for Architecture and Design to the theater:
 Early Stages students at Memphis On March 21, 2012, 100 Students from the Williamsburg High School for Architecture and Design (WHSAD) – through the generous support of Early Stages – attended a performance of the Tony Award winning Musical ‘Memphis’. . . read full article
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