July 15, 2005

KEEPING THE ARTS ALIVE

Evergreen Elementary School

Sixth graders perform “Steamboatin’ ”

By Bea Baechle
Editor

Let’s set the scene. Who? Sixth grade students and teacher Brian Wheatley. What? Dress rehearsal for the children’s musical, “Steamboatin’—A Musical Journey Down the Mississippi River.” When? 9 a.m. on May 24. Where? Evergreen Elementary School.

Alicia Silva sings “A Ramblin’ Man” with dancers Brandon Lam, Olivia Nguyen, Lianne Posada and Elven Manuel in the background.

How? “Energy, energy, energy,” said Wheatley. “Hands away from your face. Finish strong. Focus! If you can’t focus, your audience won’t either. You need to think about what you’re doing.”

Wheatley kept the one-liners coming from the audience before the first of four real audiences walked through the door on May 25. In the end, about 1,100 people saw the musical that chronicles the glory days of steamboats rolling down the Mississippi River through the recollections of a former river pilot.

Daytime audiences who enjoyed the show included all the kindergarten through fifth graders at Evergreen Elementary, the second through fifth grade students from Norwood Creek and Millbrook, and the cast’s sixth grade pen pals from St. Leo’s. One evening performance enabled family and friends to proudly witness their children’s talent.

But it’s not just the audiences who liked the show. Michael Shaver, who played Young Jed, said, “I really enjoyed it. I liked working with my friends, especially when I sang the song, ‘Betty Sue.’”

Brian Wheatley, a sixth grade teacher at Evergreen Elementary School, started producing musicals in 1987. During a dress rehearsal in May, he stands in the audience and gives his continuous feedback in preparation for the next day’s “real” performance.

Alicia Silva, who played Poker Pete, said, “It was really fun. I loved all the songs and I thought it was a great experience for me to get the courage to go up in front of everyone and sing a solo.”

When asked what she learned, Kathy Huynh, who played Mississippi Meg, replied, “It was a great experience on the stage. You do your best, and if you make a mistake, you just keep on going.”

Discovering “Steamboatin’”
Wheatley, who started producing musicals in 1987, took a trip to a warehouse in San Francisco in 1988 looking for children’s musicals. “After listening to 50 or so, I picked out three that caught my ear. ‘Steamboatin’ is my favorite,” he said.

He collaborated with several very close colleagues and produced a musical every year for more than a decade, rotating them and adding touches to scenery, dances, costumes, etc.

“My friends moved on to other schools, but the show must go on, so I continued with new teachers,” he continued. “When I moved to Evergreen in 2002, I brought the plays with me. Ms. Purdie and Ms. Weaver were eager to join in the fun and add their own creative touches.”

Although Wheatley had produced this musical about five times, this was the first time “Steamboatin’” had been performed at Evergreen Elementary.

(Top) Bria Kilkenny as Uncle Jed tells tales about life as a river pilot on the Mississippi to children Chris Pineres, Justin Pham, Megan Hobbs, Tashirie Foster and Hannah Lee as they do some fishing.

Value of the show
“Besides the marvelous curriculum connections—reading literature such as Mark Twain’s “Life on the Mississippi,” writing advertisements, giving presentations about the play, remembering and valuing American history, students learn about focus and commitment,” said Wheatley.

“We talk a lot about adrenaline and the need to conserve and channel physical and emotional energy,” he added. “Believe me, sixth graders have a great deal [of it]. Learning how to cope with it and control it is an important life skill.”

In Wheatley’s opinion, the biggest value of a grade level musical is that it brings the whole group together.

“The students learn the importance of teamwork and watching out for each other,” said Wheatley. “To quote a line from a song, ‘If we all just work together, through fair and stormy weather, we’ll find that it’s much easier as friends.’”

Wheatley produced “The Electric Sunshine Man” last year as the first sixth grade musical at Evergreen Elementary.

“The week after we were finished, the sixth graders had some free time on the playground,” remembered Wheatley.

“Without any prompting from an adult, they organized a gigantic ‘Duck, Duck, Goose’ game. It was joyful, silly and inclusive—a wonderful example of why I will continue to produce school musicals for years to come.”