A Shining Star (Girl)

This weekend I read the book Love Stargirl by Jerry Spinelli. Usually these types of books aren't my cup of coffee because to put it simply, it looks like a chick book, and while I won't argue the literary merit of literature targeted at teenage girls(twilight); I can safely say I don't find these books particularly interesting, but I had to read this book. Why you ask? Because I had read the prequel to this book, Stargirl, which I thoroughly enjoyed. So, I thought, "why don't I see what's up with my favorite ukulele-wielding character."

I enjoyed the book.

That being said I know a lot of people who didn't, they complained about this book not having the "magic" the first book had, or they found the story line annoying. They found Stargirl's optimistic outlook on life too "perfect," and they found the quirky cast of characters too quirky.

Honestly, I think the book was great, and a nice piece of fiction, and I believe people sometimes lose sight of what fiction is, what a fantasy is, and what a story can do. I could go on about this forever, but I just wanted to say that this book, to me, shows a beautiful human being, someone enlightened to the fact that they don't know too much, and they're all right with that. I see a book about a person trying to make life as wonderfully amazing as possible, and if everyone had a bit of shine that is the character Stargirl, the world would be pretty darn cool.

I'm just saying.

Sponsor Visit #2

While this is technically my second visit to my sponsor, I view it as my first official meeting with Mr. Flood. One thing I was worried about with having Mr. Flood as my sponsor was, what the heck was I going to do? I mean Mr Flood's in the school, so I thought I'd just be in the school all day, but I was wrong.

Mr. Flood and I started talking about plans for my time in Senior Project, and we came up with some pretty good ideas. One of my favorite ideas is going to Rowan to sit in on a college level class. Another idea was to go out and see some shows then have a discussion about them which could be really interesting. He also suggested that I while I keep the focus of my project on theatre, I should see other types of live performances like dance.

That got us into a discussion about what theatre exactly is. The Dictionary of Mr Flood states that theatre can be anything with the intention of performance, and I would have to agree with him, even though Webster doesn't. I believe any good performance can be considered theatre. We talked about how Spider-man represents theatre because theatre has the ability to create something new.

I learned that to Mr. Flood, theatre is life, and I'm glad that' something my sponsor believes because he loves what he does. I found out Mr. Flood found out his passion for theatre in the second grade when he was in catholic school. He was required to be in a show about the crucifixion, and it was during this show that he realized his love of theatre.

The big question we decided I should have in this project for me, is what does theatre mean to me now, and what does it mean after this experience, and I think that's a very good start to a very good senior project.

Stephen Sondhiem: a Beautiful Song, a Beautiful Mind, a Fresh Idea.(My Choice)

"Someone is Waiting" from Company

Many people consider Musical Theatre the most entertaining, and most challenging form of drama. West End and Broadway, both of these theatre districts are known for the their spectacular musical performances. To become a big name in musical theatre is a place that many aspiring actors today wish to reach.

One man I admire in the musical theatre world is Mr. Tim Carrol. He's been in the business for a while and has amassed a great amount of knowledge. This is a song he showed me by one of the great Broadway composers Stephen Sondheim. It's called "Someone is Waiting" from the musical Company. This has quickly become one of my favorite songs from a musical of all time.

One of the things that interested me was the dissonance of the song. I found myself entranced by some of the small awkward moments of this song. This dissonance in numbers is something that I've come to recognize in Stephen Sondheim's music and something I've come to enjoy. I love the originality it shows, and the way it gently challenges people's perception of musical theatre. I aspire to become someone who can say "I was original, I was unique, and I was myself." I think that's something we all strive for, and I think Senior Project is a class that can encourage that.

Thank you Mr Sondheim.

Time to Kick Off!!!!

Tonight, Feburary 3rd, is a very important night. It is the Kick Off Event for Lindenwold High School's Senior Project Seminar. As one of the students participating in this program, I was asked to compose a blog entry that tells you about my senior project, the people helping me with it, and the research paper that accompanies my project. So, here I go. My name is Michael Peak, and my Senior Project is on theatre, and the use of theatre in the classroom. My parents are Charles and Cynthia Peak. My mentor is Mrs. Baggs, the Lindenwold High School Librarian, and my Sponsor is Mr. Flood, a student teacher here at LHS, and a graduate of Rowan University with a bachelor's degree. I want to thank everyone for coming out and showing your support of Senior Project!!!!!!