Further to my first blog posting of April 6, it appears that the music program in the public school school district from which I graduated in 1977 is still thriving. Please see the text below which I excerpted from the story located at this URL: http://www.chuh.org/schools/oxford/news/detail/2011/10/28/the-heights-are-alivewith-the-sound-of-music and which you can read in its entirety. — The Heights are alive…with The Sound of Music October 28, 2011 Cleveland Heights, OH Sound of Music Production at Heights High November 3, 4, 5 at 7:30 p.m. and November 6 at 4 p.m. Heights High Auditorium $10 orchestra, $6 mezzanine Call 320-3105 for tickets
Singing, dancing, and award-winning musicians from across the Cleveland Heights-University Heights School District will bring the timeless favorite –“The Sound of Music –” to our community in early November. Under the direction of Craig McGaughey, the cast will include more than 600 students in four performances, including 200 high school vocal music students, 75 instrumental students in the pit orchestra, 30 stage crew members, and 120 middle school and 250 elementary students in the chorus. The show includes two casts, each performing two nights.
Seven of the lead performers talked about the show and their characters in a recent interview. The first thing that is very clear is that this group knows each other well, and they display a sweet affection for each other that comes from hours spent in rehearsal together.
The second thing that is apparent is that they love being performers and are likely to act out a scene to demonstrate a point, or just for fun.
“This is an amazing and challenging undertaking by our Vocal and Instrumental Music Department,” Musical Director Craig McGaughey said. “Our students have been working hard in rehearsals, and this will be a phenomenal show. The community is going to be so proud of our students. This will be a performance they will always remember.” — Now this is what I call a music program. Clearly, the support of the tax payers of the Cleveland Heights/University Heights School District and the school board has not waned for this program.
