More than 600 hundred friends and family members came to Glenfield this weekend to support the 80+ middle school student cast and tech crew in their performance of Natalie Babbitt’s "Tuck Everlasting," a coming of age story about a young girl named Winnie Foster, who is faced with the decision of living forever or following the course of life as planned.
"Tuck Everlasting" is a wonderful story that embodies the variety of themes experienced by pre-teens throughout the journey of discovering their identity: love, family, loyalty, life, death and growing up.
Board of Education President Allison Silverstein, along with Board members Eric Scherzer, Brian Fleischer and Melanie Deysher attended the evening shows.
The show “was amazing and phenomenal!” stated Silverstein. Fleischer concurred, “The play was incredible as always. Glenfield is the best!” Deysher added, “The production blew me away. The level of the performance was fantastic.”
Under the direction of Glenfield’s amazingly talented Theater Arts, Vocal and Dance teachers, Tom Lupfer, Gayle Fuentes and Julia Sprung, students have been rehearsing and preparing for these performances since last September.
Over the course of three days, the cast performed two day performances on Thursday and Friday for the student body, and two evening performances on Friday and Saturday for friends and family. While Lupfer, Fuentes and Sprung managed the onstage performance including light and sound, Visual Art and Consumer Science Teachers Amy Cohen, Shelley Stebbins and Keeley Flack worked with the Tech crew behind the scenes to design the sets and costumes. Instrumental Music teacher Jonathan Ward played drums with the orchestra in the pit for each performance.
“It is an honor and a privilege to work with such a talented group of educators and students,” stated Principal Erika Pierce. “Our superior student talent and award winning performances are what makes the Glenfield middle school experience so unique. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve been approached by audience members after shows asking if ‘these kids are really in middle school.’ Once I say yes, the statement is always followed by, ‘They should be on Broadway!’"