Curtain Call

This blog is dedicated to the kids who nobody understands why the arts are so important to them

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Here is the the final interview for the blog that I did with one of my favorite people in the entire world and my best friend Eric Frankel. Eric is one of the most talented people I've have ever met and the pleasure to work with and I am honored to call him one of my best friends back home. Here is what he had to say in his interview:

saving-the-arts: Why do you think having the arts is important for high school?

 Eric Frankel: I think the arts are important for any education. The world has so many scholars and mathematicians and scientists and they’re all very important but at the same time one of the most enduring things throughout mankind is art. Advancements in science have shaped the way we live, but so too have great works of art. Shakespeare, Mozart, Michelangelo, DaVinci, Tchaikovsky; all great artists in very different realms of the art world but who’s work has lasted centuries and is still immediately recognizable today. To cut art from schools should be just as unthinkable as cutting science or math.

STA: What was the arts (Band, theatre, and mastersingers) like for you at school?

 EF: Cranbrook has always prided itself in being an “arts” school. And I’ve had an amazing experience here. However, it really seems to neglect the performing arts. It’s always been an uphill battle to get proper funding for theater. On the other hand, a lot of colleges generally have a lot of respect for kids who come from mediocre programs because they generally know how to make the most out of any situation. But other than funding problems, my experience with the arts has been fantastic. I was in Band since fourth grade, and was taught by teachers who really got me to understand how music worked right from its core and I am really very grateful to them because it gave me such a broader appreciation for music in general. Mastersingers of course gave me an incredibly unique experience to be with a bunch of super talented guys who (almost) all of them just love to sing.

STA: What were your instructors (Mr. Murphy, Mr. H, and Mr. Gabriel) like and what was it like working with them like? 

 EF: As I said before, Mr. H and Mrs. Kapala gave me an education in appreciating music that I have and will continue to use in my everyday life. Mr. Murphy, with all his flaws, did give me an appreciation for making the most out of very little when you’re working in live theater. Our performing arts center was a gym when my dad went to school, so understanding the amount of work you have to put in just to make the front row of the audience hear you is a skill that I imagine will be helpful to me in any future theater endeavors.

STA: Did your school’s art program help you for college or later in life? 

 EF: Definitely. Mr. Gabriel has spent hours working with me on how to audition for colleges and how to audition in certain situations which has been so helpful.

STA: What are you doing now at school that is arts related?

 ER: Right now I’m still in the Mastersingers and I’m about to start rehearsals for Legally Blonde!

STA: What do you want to go into after school (College wise) and will you continue the arts in college?

EF: I want to go into filmmaking and creative writing. I’ve always had a love of writing and storytelling, but after Cranbrook theater I definitely want to remain involved in acting on stage in college.

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Here is Eric (and your's truly playing the role of FDR) singing the reprise of "Tomorrow" in the cabinet scene in Annie...I honestly did not know that this video even existed...lol!

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Here is Eric playing the role of Burt Healy (and a star appearance of Noa Ervin) in last year's winter musical, Annie

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And another...hahaha!

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Here is another scene of Eric in The Drowsy Chaperone

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Later tonight, I am interviewing one of my favorite performers from high school and one of my best friends in the entire world, Eric Frankel. Eric, who is now a senior in high school, is extremely talented in all areas of the theatre; singing, acting, and apparently dancing now...i don't know when that happened...but anyways, here is him preforming his role as the producer in The Drowsy Chaperone , at a summer theatre camp called Stage Door which is in upstate New York and is know for being prestiges. Enjoy!

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This says it all

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Visit Original Link

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Visit Original Link

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Visit Original Link

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Here's Noa talking about her experience in Cranbrook Theatre and her views on her director (Sorry if the audio is cut or hard to hear in the beginning...) (apparently I used up all my audio space today so there is more to come tomorrow :D)

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I also had another interview with one of my best friends from high school who I always thought was one of the most talented people that i've ever meet, Noa Ervin. Noa is studying theatre at USC and is one of my best friends. Noa is beautiful, her voice is gorgeous, and her acting is amazing. We have done theatre together since we were in sophomore year. In this interview, i only wrote down 1 question because I recorded the rest and will put them up later tonight. :)

saving-the-arts: What is your opinion on the arts [theatre] in high school? Do you think its important and we should keep it?

Noa Ervin: Yeah I definitely think that we should. Yeah theatre had a big impact on my life and on my high school career. I feel that the theatre has a big impact on my life and the people around me since I formed so many bounds and friendships through high school theatre. Even for people who were not acting or haven’t been acting before but want to just try out the theatre, they form bounds. The theatre and acting in general is important because it teaches so much like how to tie into how actors act as their character and they make it their own. You could be anyone who you wanted to be in the theatre and on the stage and you were praised for it even though it was just fun for you to do. For me, theatre is huge in my life and it affected me as a person in life and in high school.

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I had another interview with one of my good friends from high school, the very beautiful and extremely talented Alanna Hoffman who is currently studying at Bates college but is transferring to Brown University in January. Not only is Alanna a phenomenal actress but she is an excellent singer and was always one of the leads in high school as far as I can remember. I always looked up to her for acting. Here's what she had to say during the interview:

saving-the-arts: Do you personally think that we should keep the arts (the theatre) in schools? Why?

Alanna Hoffman: I definitely think that we should keep the arts in schools- all arts, not just theatre. Art is about expressing and finding yourself and finding ways to connect with others on so many different levels. It teaches in a way that academics cannot.

STA: What was your experience in cranbrook theatre like?

AH: My experience in Cranbrook theatre was a myriad of feelings. Enjoyable, frustrating, time-consuming, amazing, stressful, fun, emotional, a bunch of other things. To be honest, I don't think I'd be the person I am today without Cranbrook theatre and the good and bad things that came with it. It was where I found my core group of friends as a freshman and throughout high school, my favorite time of year was always the time spent working on the winter musical. I was with some of my best friends doing what I loved most. That being said, I think Cranbrook needs to do a lot to boost up its theatre program. The only acting classes available when I was in school there were Beginning Acting and Advanced Acting, which didn't really give me a chance in school to branch out and immerse myself in acting as a craft. As a result of that (although I probably would've done this anyway), I participated in summer theatre programs at Interlochen, UMich, and Brown. Also, it seems that there is little to no money going toward the theatre program at Cranbrook, which I would love to see change. I remember being really frustrated at the fact that we'd always hear about money being donated to sports teams or a new facility being built when really, the PAC is in desperate need of new technology and maybe even a new space, as it wasn't built to be a theatre in the first place, but a gym. Also, I thoroughly enjoyed each production I was in and ended up loving them but I remember wishing at the time that student opinions would be taken into consideration a little when choosing the musicals and plays.

STA: What was it like working with mr. murphy?

AH: Here are three things I learned from working with our high school director:

1. a great technique to memorize monologues

2. when playing a crazy person, don't act knowingly crazy because a crazy person doesn't know they're crazy

3. the importance of time management

STA: Did cranbrook theatre prepare you for theatre in college? why or why not?

AH: To some extent. It prepared me for learning to manage academics and theatre, as academics are extremely important at Cranbrook. As I said before, I wish there had been more opportunities for theatre classes. I also wish we had had more opportunities for student run theatre, besides the experience of the senior-directed spring studio. The majority of theatre productions on college campuses are by student groups, so I think that having a student theatre group would've been a valuable experience.

STA: Are you studying theatre at Bates right now? I know you are going to Brown and will you continue theatre there?

AH: I am studying theatre, along with history and french, at Bates currently and will continue to study all three when I transfer to Brown in January.

STA: What are your plans for after college?

AH: I'd love to take about six months after college to travel and visit places all over the world. I'd also like to spend about two to three years living in either New York or LA, going on auditions and familiarizing myself with the theatre and film industry before applying to graduate school to recieve my MFA in theatre. What I want to do in life is act, so I will follow that passion.

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Photoset from the Fall 2012 Cranbrook Schools production of Anatomy of Grey 

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For this interview, I spoke on the phone with one of my good friends and a senior actresses from Cranbrook Schools, Arianna Headrick. Arianna is an extremely talented and beautiful young girl who can not only sing and dance, since she has been in three musicals with me, but she act extremely well. From what I have been told, the recent fall play Anatomy of Grey in which she was the star of the show, the play was so good that it was not seen as a high school play but an off-broadway play based on the acting. This interview is talking about her experience in the play itself, the new director, and whats changed since I've left Cranbrook.

saving-the-arts: Why do you think having the arts [theatre] is important for high school?

Arianna Headrick: Theatre gives a place to express ourselves. For most people that are into theatre they are very, very shy, and theatre gives them a chance for them to express themselves and for them to be noticed by others who might not have noticed them during school. We also make friends through theatre. Students also can find out who they are and understand themselves through there characters that they play and how they interpret them. It also lets people achieve their dreams or passions on stage. Keeping theatre is incredibly important.

STA: There is a new director at Cranbrook, what are your impressions of him? Is he better or worse that the older director?

AH: With the change in directors it has drastically changed. [the last director of Cranbrook theatre] lack of passion and attitude was clear and whatever he wanted to convey in what he wanted for his actors was never brought to rehearsal. He never came into rehearsals with any inspiring words, he had no motivation and he was unable to encourage the students. The students that he had for the actors were not focused at all because of his outlook for the theatre and this made the productions, the fall plays in particular, miserable. They were miserable because only the underclassman auditioned since none of the upperclassmen wanted to since they knew about the director and how he taught. The underclassmen saw that he had no motivation at all. Once they auditioned, they never audition again. In all honesty the amount of effort students put into the productions reflect the director’s attitude. He was terrible.

STA: What’s the difference between the old director and the new director? How was your experience with him being the star of the 2012 fall play, Anatomy of Grey?

AH: The difference between him and Mr. D is that he comes to every rehearsal with a positive attitude. Mr. D has actual faith in all of the actors and he  comes in with a sense of “we can do this”. He wants us to grow as people, to grow as actors, and develop the characters and make them our own. He always had a plan and could cope with the situations that seemed impossible to the last director who would just give up if he was still directing. Mr. D gave me and the other actors in the fall play hope and it helped create the best show I’ve ever done for the fall play. People came out of the theatre crying  His energy and passion helped make a fantastic production and the best fall show Cranbrook has ever had, not to sound arrogant or anything (laughs).

STA: Did you enjoy being in Anatomy of Grey? Why?

AH: I did, I loved it. The best part of the show for me was that the plot itself was not just important to the play but how the characters themselves were portrayed and how they all reflected life itself. The play itself was really relatable and believable for everyone. We spent so much time working on characters development, which was new to me. The experience was more college like than high school. We received character study sheets and why we were portraying these characters. This was an amazing experience and I loved every second of it. Even though I am a senior and I only have Mr. D as a director for a year it is truly better than nothing

STA: Did you audition for the winter musical, Legally Blonde? If so, did you make it?

AH: I did audition and I did make Legally Blonde. I play the character Galen in Legally Blonde. Even though she is not an important character to the show she is a member of  the Delta Nu sorority in the musical. I believe that that what I’ve learned from the fall play will help me in this musical. Even though my part is not that big. (Laughs)

STA: Where do you want to go to college? Would you like to study or major in theatre in college?

AH: Brown, Macalester, Yale, Reed in Portland, and U of M. I don’t want to major in theatre but I definitely want to take classes and participate in drama in college. It is such a big part of my life and it is too important to just give up. I definitely want to go back to the theatre when I’m older.

STA: Has your theatre experience at Cranbrook helped for college?

AH: Even though I did not learn anything from the last director, I have learned more in 2 or 3 months with Mr. D than with the last director. I’m headed somewhere were I can grow up and I’ve now started a foundation for myself so if I do go into a theatre I can use what Mr. D taught me to become an amazing actress.