By Amber Thompson
Seven years.
That's a considerable chunk of my life, since I'm 17.
Seven years of my life I have been involved in several theatrical productions.
I've been in plays at the Ashtabula Arts Center, Chris D'Itri Productions
and school plays.
I've been everything ranging from a goose to "Rabbit" in "Winnie-the-Pooh."
I had never experienced one thing though. I had never gotten a lead in a
play. It seemed voice lessons, dance lessons and drama technique did not
seem to guarantee a leading role. I had begun to think I would never get
my turn.
I've had one great year, performance wise. I became co-captain of the Ashtabula
Pride Marching Band's flag line. Later, I got to have my dream role in "Rock
Nativity," a condescending shepherd. (Thanks for taking me on such
short notice, Chris.)
Then our school play auditions rolled around. It was announced that we were
doing "Bye, Bye Birdie." I knew the part I wanted. All I had to
do was convince both directors I had what it took to be "Rosie,"
the sassy, love driven secretary. She was the lead female role.
It would be a hard task. It demanded a little bit of everything, from acting,
dancing and singing.
The first step required of the potential cast was to write a resume of experience
and perhaps most importantly, why we should have the part so desired.
It took some heavy thinking and I knew I would have to write something downright
original.
"Rose" was Spanish and it just so happens that I am 50 percent
Spanish and can speak enough to get by in the play.
I listed all 15 or more plays I've been in, all the classes I took and general
information. After many auditions and callbacks, the cast list went up.
I had gotten the part! I was so excited, then the aftershock set in. I would
be performing in front of my peers, people I see every day. I worried, but
knew all I could do was my best, and have fun doing it.
I know a lot of teens write about being on stage and I know most of my fellow
Teen/Currents writers personally from being in shows with them. I was not
the first to get a starring role, it was just a first for me. The best piece
of advice my mom gives me about going into anything that takes concentration,
discipline and hard work is, when everything is said and done, if I feel
like I could have / should have worked harder, did not give my all, it is
only then I have failed.
As long as I worked hard and dedicated the best I could and had fun doing
it, then I cannot help but to be proud.
I did my own choreography, had outfits organized (thanks Mrs. Rococi!),
and managed to memorize a lot of lines.
I felt extremely satisfied and it was so much fun working with such a talented
and patient cast.
I would also like to thank Karen Dannels and to the gifted Carl When.
I am honored they both trusted me to pull this off and for giving me the
chance to prove to myself, if anybody, that I could do it. I'm already waiting
for next year's announcement of the play. I truly had fun.
I walked past my kitchen table and smelled the bunches of flowers I received
and it is like reliving the whole wonderful experience all over.
Even though I may get frustrated with your criticism, I appreciate it, Mom.
You do know what you're talking about. Lynne Gollon, thanks for your help
on the choreography. The support I've received is abundant from both family
and friends.
No, I am not practicing for The Oscars. I'm "honestly sincere."
Thompson is a junior at Ashtabula High School. We edited from her column
the following phrase, "You love me, you really love me." We were
afraid Sally Field the phrase copywritten.
By BECKY SIMPSON
What could be a worse drag the day you get out of school for the summer
than getting smacked by a train?
It can be avoided.
Recently, I attended a program called Operation Lifesaver which is a proven,
positive, year-round campaign to reduce crashes and pedestrian/trespasser
incidents.
It is sponsored by railroads, federal and state government agencies, fraternal
and civic organizations and concerned citizens.
One of the parts of the program that impacted me the most was when Christine
Vest spoke about her son, Jeffrey. Jeffrey was killed by a train on Oct.
9, 1997. He was a junior at Harvey High School who decided to play chicken
on the railroad tracks with his friends. She stressed the idea that if you
go against a train - the train will win. Vest also asked us to keep Jeffrey
in mind when we're near the tracks, and she left us with the words "THINK
FIRST."
The objective of this special passenger train was to eliminate needless
tragedies in Ohio by increasing public awareness about highway-rail grade
crossing safety and pedestrian safety along the railways.
The day began with a welcome and introduction by Don Slemmer, Operation
Lifesaver's state coordinator.
He stressed that pedestrians need to be aware about the dangers of highway-rail
grade crossing. (Those trains are bigger than you).
Next, Maria Ward from Conrail explained the process of the workshop. She
expressed to us the importance of "community involvement programs."
We boarded the train. This was my first time on a train, and it was really
interesting. This passenger train, provided by Conrail had a TV camera mounted
on the front of the locomotive that sent a live feed to a color monitor
in each passenger car.
(Who knows, it may become the next compressed TCI cable channel.)
I, as well as the other workshop guests, had an "engineers view"
to observe vehicle traffic and violators in front of our train at the crossings.
There was a police officer in the locomotive cab, an Ohio State Highway
Patrol aircraft overhead and police officers covering as many crossings
as possible. These officers were to apprehend motorists who chose to ignore
the crossing warning devices, placing their lives plus the lives of their
passengers, the train crew and community in jeopardy. Fortunately, there
were no violators during our workshop.
For the educational part of the trip, I learned about the three E's of grade
crossing safety. The are: engineering, for improving warning signs and signals;
education, to stimulate driver and pedestrian awareness of crossing dangers;
and enforcement, of driver and pedestrian safety laws.
Overall, I had a very enjoyable and educational day. I also learned many
things I didn't know. Most importantly, I saw the dangers of railroad tracks
and will be a lot more careful in my dealings with them.
I would like to thank the Madison Village Police Department for making the
program a success.
Simpson, who is ending her junior year at Geneva High School, has also
learned you don't sunbath on the railroad tracks. One obvious reason, when
you roll over there will be a mark down your back. Also, you could be hit
by a train.
By BETH GARDINER
Associated Press Writer
NEW YORK - Prom dress? Check. Limo? Ready to go. Date? Who needs one?
This prom season, it seems more teen-agers than ever are going dateless,
arriving at the big event with large groups of friends rather than making
an entrance on the arm of a boyfriend or girlfriend.
"It's the '90s. Everything is different," says Stacey Lee, 18,
a student at Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis High School in New York City. "Women
are not shy anymore. They can have fun without a guy."
Boys, too, are going dateless in numbers that might shock their parents
or older brothers and sisters.
"Ten years ago, if you didn't have a date a month before the prom,
you probably weren't going to go," says Cynthia Bell, executive editor
at Petersen's Youth Group, which publishes Teen magazine. "It's a little
bit more casual today. Even if at the last moment you just decide to go
with a friend, that's OK."
Only 51 percent of 750 high school girls questioned by Teen in a loose survey
said they planned to go to the prom with a boyfriend, Bell says. Eleven
percent said they would go with a group of friends, and 35 percent with
one friend.
While some teens go with friends only as a last resort, others say the prom
can be more fun without the pressure of a date.
Jasmine Espinal and Lori Arcelay plan to attend their May 29 prom at Jacqueline
Kennedy Onassis with a group of 10 friends.
"Some people think we couldn't get dates, but actually we CHOSE not
to have dates," Arcelay says. "There might be somebody that feels
awkward, like, `Gosh, I don't have a date.' We feel secure enough to go
by ourselves."
Going stag can actually open up new romantic possibilities.
"When you have a boyfriend or a date you limit yourself," says
Yudelka Mercedes, 17, of Park West High School in New York City. "If
you're with your friends, you can talk to everyone."
Why the change in attitude?
"It definitely has to do with girls feeling like a boyfriend doesn't
complete them, doesn't define them, doesn't make them any cooler,"
says Amy Paulsen, executive editor of Teen People magazine. "Girls
have a much more liberated attitude than they did 10, 20 years ago."
And the boys?
"Guys are thrilled to have the pressure off them, that they don't have
to gather up their nerve and ask a girl," she says.
Paulsen says teens in big cities and in the Northeast and West tend to be
more comfortable going dateless, while those in the Southeast and Midwest
take a more traditional view.
In Los Angeles, Birmingham High School administrator Linda Ibach says prom
tickets are sold individually as well as in pairs, since many students go
in large groups.
At Franklin High School outside Milwaukee, junior class president Alison
Tuskowski, 17, went to the prom last Saturday with her boyfriend. "It's
just more fun that way," she says. "There's always someone there
to talk to, there's always someone there to dance with."
Lee says she and her friends plan to have a sleepover the night before the
prom, and then spend the afternoon doing each other's hair and makeup before
riding to the party in a rented limousine.
"We're all dateless," she says. "With or without a guy, I'm
going to have a good time."
Attention: Are you a senior, graduating from high school,
or at least junior?
If you had your wish, what would you want as a graduation present?
Let us know what you have in mind. When your suggestion shows up in a future
Teen/Currents, you can always clip it out, circle your entry, write "HINT
HINT" in red marker and leave it on a
parent's pillow.
So fill out our fine survey and e-mail it. (Remember
if you are reading this and graduations are long past, the link probably
won't work)
Snail to Teen/Currents: Ashtabula Star Beacon, P.O. Box 2100, Ashtabula 44005-2100 or e-mail bobleb@suite224.net.