4 // COASTWEEKEND.COM
Musical revue
returns to Seaside
High School
Seaside
High
School
choir
director
Kimber
Parker
leads the
students
in song
during
class.
By KATHERINE LACAZE
FOR COAST WEEKEND
T
hanks to Seaside High
School seniors Taylor
Carson and Holly
Snook, the choir will once
again stage a winter musical
revue to entertain the public
and raise money for their
program.
The revue will take place
at 7 p.m. Thursday, Jan. 17,
at the high school’s cafete-
ria/auditorium and feature
songs from the 1950s to the
2000s. Selections include
“Rockin’ Robin” and “Man
in the Mirror” by Michael
Jackson; “The Boys are Back
in Town” by Thin Lizzy;
“Single Ladies” by Beyoncé;
and “Waterfalls” by TLC.
Unlike the choir’s three
performance concerts, held
at the end of each trimester
and featuring classic choral
KATHERINE
LACAZE
PHOTO
music, the revue is geared
more toward entertainment,
featuring dancing, theatrics
and costumes.
“Musical revues are
straight-up pop, really fun
to watch,” choice teacher
Kimber Parker said.
Creating a bond
The choir put on musical
revues for a few years under
the previous choir director,
Vanessa Rush. After skipping
T he
Astoria Christmas
Fantastic
Portlant Jazz Trio
Snook said.
Carson, who was shy as
a freshman, believes having
a mix of grade levels helps
older students set a positive
example for younger ones.
“We get taught how to
come out of our shells and
love ourselves a little more
at an early stage, because we
have older kids who have
already been through the
process,” she said. “It’s nice
to be a senior now, and I’m
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H
the revue last year, Snook
and Carson were determined
to bring it back, organizing
the event as a joint Pacifica
Project.
When they were un-
derclassmen, they felt the
revue helped them mature as
performers, grow closer to
their classmates and learn to
be comfortable in their own
skin.
“It really opens you up
while having a lot of fun,”
With Kelley Shannon & Frients
H
Liberty Theatre
Saturday, December 22 nd , 2018 at 6 pm
Sponsored By The Riverwalk Inn
like, ‘OK, I need to step up
to the plate and start to get
close to these kids and teach
them it’s okay to be them-
selves.’”
Parker also thinks of
the musical revue as a
team-building experience for
the choir students, particu-
larly ahead of competition
season. The choir has grown
exponentially, she said, from
37 students last year to 65
this year.
“It will be a really good
way to create a bond, and
that will make us stronger
going into the rest of the
year,” Parker said. “Kids
are going to trust each other
after this.”
New robes
All choir students par-
ticipate in some capacity,
primarily by performing
but also working backstage,
providing technical support,
or running the snack bar
during intermission. Former
Seaside student Anita
Barbic, who attends Clatsop
Community College, is help-
ing Snook and Carson with
choreography.
Students also plan to
conduct a drawing for au-
dience members to win the
prize of sitting on a couch at
the front of the auditorium
during the musical revue.
Originally the revue was
intended as a fundraiser for
new performance robes, as
the current ones were pur-
chased in the mid-1990s and
showing significant wear
and tear. With the district
paying some of the cost and
the community stepping up
with the rest, however, the
need no longer exists.
“We made up that money
so quickly, so our robes are
paid for,” Parker said.
The new purpose of the
funds raised is purchasing
high-quality, waterproof gar-
ment bags to help the robes
stay in pristine condition for
many years, she said.
Independent
musicians
The choir is getting pre-
pared for competition season
in other ways, as well. Last
season, they made it to the
state competition, where
they excelled at sight-read-
ing.
“We’re much (further)
along this year than we were
last year,” Parker said.
Carson agreed. She feels
the students have a stronger
grasp of all the components
of music, including theory
and technique.
A goal of Parker’s teach-
ing philosophy is to help
students thoroughly under-
stand music. She focuses on
sight-reading, vocal tech-
nique and emoting.
“I want to turn kids into
independent musicians, so
they can get a piece of music
and know what to do with
it,” she said. CW
Tickets $20 or $25
Shows begin at 7:30 p.m.
Sunday shows starts at 3:00pm
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Tickets: 503-436-1242 or coastertheatre.com
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