Bye Bye Birdie: A Review by Isabel F.

I went to New York City over winter break, and got to do something awesome: see the revival of Bye Bye Birdie on Broadway. Birdie tells the tale of Conrad Birdie, a beloved pop star drafted to the US army, and his hardworking manager, Albert Peterson. Rose, Albert’s secretary and longtime girlfriend, has a brilliant idea for Conrad’s sendoff. She picks the name of one of the many Conrad fans out of a hat and draws Kim MacAfee from Sweet Apple, Ohio. Conrad will journey to Sweet Apple and give “One Last Kiss” to Kim before dramatically leaving for duty. This is supposed to raise enough money for Albert to quit the show biz, and of course Sweet Apple is ecstatic. Albert, Rose, Conrad, Kim and the entire town of Sweet Apple find themselves drastically changed by this experience. Birdie is a peppy, playful show with a lot of heart, soul and energy. There are many comic parts of the musical, like when Kim’s father (hilariously played by Bill Irwin) is raised by a crane while on the “Ed Sullivan Show.” The endless resources, costumes and sets a Broadway production has access to really made the show for me. In one opening scene during a number called “Telephone Hour” the teenage actors swung around in brightly colored telephone booths while singing and dancing. The singing was Broadway-caliber, but compared to others in that realm fairly average. I liked the contrast of lighthearted numbers with more tender, meaningful scenes. Natalie Hill played Rose Alvarez: she was the understudy for Gina Gershom but still did a fantastic job. She and Allie Trimm, who played Kim MacAfee, did a pretty duet in “What Did We Ever See in Them”. Conrad Birdie was portrayed by Nolan Gerard Funk, which was not very memorable for me, but he got the job done. John Stamos (from Full House) played a more relaxed Albert than I’ve seen before, but impressive nonetheless. There was one point where he started cracking up in the middle of a solo, which I didn’t mind as much as some would. Overall, Bye Bye Birdie could have been more clean and polished, but it was very entertaining and definitely made you “Put on a Happy Face.”

Awesome Wave Pictures: Remember Summer?

These photos were all taken by the talented Clark Little, a well-known photographer who stands in the ocean snapping these gorgeous pictures for us to enjoy. Thanks to Caroline H. to sending me the email that showed these awesome photographs!
Posted by Isabel

Council of the Gods '09! (At Peabody)

Style Rookie: A Cool Blog By Isabel F.

Some middle school kids may consider themselves stylish, but Tavi Gevinson takes fashion to a whole new level. She is a 13-year-old self-prescribed "dork" from Chicago who writes a very successful fashion blog called "Style Rookie." Tavi keeps up to date with hot new designers and hip new trends all through the ironic, conversational voice of an eighth-grader. her writing style is incredibly easy to relate to, while being entertaining and detail-orienting at the same time. From reading a single post, you come away knowing a lot more about the fashion world and smiling from Tavi's humorous tone. If you'd like to educate yourself on chic clothes and cute shoes then visit Style Rookie when you find yourself bored and surfing the Internet. Even if fashion's not your thing, try this blog just for the pleasure of Tavi's funny chronicles. Or why not have a little fun ridiculing the more hideous styles? Either way, Style Rookie is for you.

tavi-thenewgirlintown.blogspot.com

Stay away from drugs A protest song based on Fireflies by Amanda S, Maggie D, Hailey H, Olivia M, and Emma R

This is part of a school project in music class.

You would not believe kids these days
Getting so high and crazed
I see them around me every day

‘Cause they’d fill the open air
With smoke everywhere
They are so rude
You can smell it in their hair

I’d like to make myself believe
That they could stop but most won’t
It’s impossible to make me stay
Around them for just a day
‘Cause they are not as good as they may seem

‘Cause I’d get a hundred bugs
From five hundred thousand drugs
As they tried to teach me how to smoke

A cancer that can’t be cured
A life that is not ensured
A bunch of kids are just getting lured

I’d like to make myself believe
That they could stop but most won’t
It’s impossible to make me stay
Around them just for a day
‘Cause they are not as good as they may seem

Don’t get yourselves into this

(Get yourselves away from it)

‘Cause I feel like such things shouldn’t exist

(Get yourselves away from it)

Why do I tire of smelling you?
(Get yourselves away from it)

But all you do is continue