Welcome to Puppets with first hour! They had a blast! Some awesome puppets this year and adorable shows. Yay Puppets!

CAPA CARES for the holiday season!

This is our 3rd annual Adopt a family project. 
In years past, our efforts have changed the lives of families struggling to make ends meet. Several of our past families are back on their feet and credit CAPA for giving them hope and they are now helping others. We are adopting three families this year and we need all the participation we can get. All three families are working, but struggle with putting food on the table. Here are the specifics...
Family One

10 year old boy…size 10

2 year old boy…size 2

3 year old girl…size 3

This family struggles to put food on the table. They are in desperate need of food staples. All kids need a winter jacket

Family Two

16 year old boy…extra large, needs a winter jacket

13 year old girl…women’s size 10, needs a winter jacket

Food is the most needed item for this family.

Family Three

15 year old boy…Men’s medium, pants 29-30, winter coat needed (loves blue and black) needs a winter jacket

13 year old girl…medium women’s, pants size 6 (loves purple and pink) needs a winter jacket

Again, this family struggles with food.

DONATION IDEAS…

 Food items…rice, beans, peanut butter, macaroni and cheese, canned food, pasta, boxed food, juice etc…

 Clothes…New clothes only please. Winter jackets, gloves, hats, scarves, boots, pajamas, pants, shirts, socks, sweaters, sweatshirts.

 Presents…anything fun. These kids do not receive gifts at all for the holidays, as they are struggling just to feed themselves. Anything you can think of that would be fun to receive. Arts and crafts, books, nail polish, blankets, games, toys, cards…the list goes on.

Gift cards are also a wonderful help!!!! If you know of a business/organization or family members/neighbors that would like to help us with these families, we would love that too!

 ALL DONATIONS CAN BE PLACED IN THE CAPA CLASSROOMS. WE ARE ACCEPTING DONATIONS THROUGH DECEMBER 15^th. THANK YOU IN ADVANCE FOR MAKING A DIFFERENCE!! 

Post show depression...this is when an amazing show is over and you become very sad and miss it like you would miss someone who has passed. It is a real thing. Teenagers who experience PSD will become withdrawn, might walk around the house sadly humming showtunes, could possibly talk of characters from the show as real people. (I really miss Motormouth, she was such a trailblazer) It will slowly fade away, but PSD is real. 

Thank you to parents who donated intermission goods, helped at builds, paints and strike and who loaned their kids out for the past three months. I couldn't be more proud. Photo CDs (or a Dropbox option) are coming soon! Just catching a breath first.

That's a wrap! See you at the next show!!!!!!!

HAIRSPRAY TICKETS ARE NOW ON SALE BY CALLING 734-744-2650 #70463

OR RESERVING ONLINE AT 

CAPABOXOFFICE@GMAIL.COM

TICKETS ARE $10 PRESALE

$12 AT THE DOOR

WE ARE STILL LOOKING FOR WATER AND CANDY BAR DONATIONS TO SELL AT INTERMISSION EVERY NIGHT. PLEASE BRING ALL DONATIONS TO MS. HILLMAN'S ROOM ANYTIME. THANK YOU IN ADVANCE!!

Hello everyone, Mrs. Porter here with a CAPA Vocal update!

We had our first concert of the season this week, our Classical Recital on Tuesday and Wednesday.  I am very proud of the work all the students have done and both nights were a success.  I have received positive feedback from parents and audience members.  Great job everyone!  Next up, we will be singing at the Peace Pole ceremony on Oct. 28th during the day and are choosing music for the Holiday Concert in December.  

We have some students getting ready to sing at the National Association of Teachers of Singing (NATS) competition on Saturday , Nov. 1st in Lansing.  Ms. Jacquez, our resident voice teacher, is working with this select group on their pieces.  They will be competing with fellow high school students and will be able to hear performances from the college and graduate student divisions.  It is a great opportunity and the chance to hear some excellent performances!  

Don't forget to bring in money for the CAPA Hayride!  $10 per person is due by Oct. 22nd.  The hayride is on Saturday, Oct. 25th from 6-9:30pm at Real Life Day Farm in Canton.   I will provide the hot dogs and buns, anyone who is coming needs to bring either:
A 2 liter of pop or a case of water
Snacks--chips, trail mix, popcorn, etc.
Smores stuff--marshmallows, chocolate, graham crackers
Dress warmly, the event is rain or shine.  We will meet at the farm.  Be sure to come, we always have a great time!

That's it for now, check back for more CAPA news!
Mrs. Porter

Hairspray News...

Please note that the program ad due date has been extended to Monday, October 20th. If you need more info, please e~mail Ms. Hillman. Program ads are fun for all! Please consider putting one or more in for your cast/crew member or for the whole group!

Tickets will go on sale October 20th. They are $10 presale and $12 at the door!

We are looking for donations of water and candy bars to sell at intermission. If you would like to help us out with donations, please e~mail Ms. Hillman or bring it on in! We appreciate any and all help!

The show is looking good! It is an exciting and exhausting process! 

Until next time...peace, love, CAPA.
Ms. Hillman 

This week, Acting one explored the wonderful world of folktales from around the world! Here are the masks they created! It was fun and I was proud of their creativity!

Acting 2 worked on CAPA Cares and we "Facetimed" Afghanistan to speak to one of my former students, who is serving there. This group will be donating goods to the troops. Other groups are also gearing up to help other causes. Stay tuned...

Advanced acting just completed their Historical monologues. They were excellent! 

Special Studies has a completed script for the Biggest show! We are starting to rehearse on Monday.

So...things are heating up in the Acting Strand! Thank you to the parents/guardians who came to see me at conferences! It is always fun to see everyone!

Hello everyone, Ms. Hillman here with some important tips for being a teenager in 2014...

I realize that social media is an important part of your everyday life. But, please be fully aware that every single thing you post on social media can be viewed by others. This means words, images and anything else that can be posted. 
It just hangs out there forever in that big media cloud in the sky and you cannot take it back!

So, please be careful when you are posting things online. For your own sake and the sake of others. 

Taking photos and videos of people without their knowledge or permission is invasive....especially in the arts. Sometimes we have special moments in class/during shows, lectures, performances, rehearsals and those moments should be left to our memories. It doesn't need to be documented. If you would like to video or photograph someone's performance/rehearsals, you need to ask them if it is okay. This goes for all of our CAPA strands. It is the respectful and right thing to do. Do not post unless permission is granted. Please. 

While I am at it...let's all focus on our communication skills. Talking to people...actually face to face...is a lost art and it is such an important skill to have. We must get back in the habit of communicating our feelings to each other without the use of a keyboard or a video camera. TALK to each other, even if it is uncomfortable at first. This way of communicating is mature, respectful and will help you as you navigate the world in the present and future. Trust me. 

Listen, I know being a teenager is rough sometimes...but it can also be some of your best years. Just treat people the way you would like to be treated (thanks Mom!) and live in a way that makes you proud to be you. We are all in this together and mistakes will be made....but growing from those mistakes are what this life is all about!

Lecture has been completed. :) DING.


Theatrically Yours with Love, Ms. Hillman 

Hairspray cast...please go to Mrs. Porter's school webpage for music...so you can rehearse! It is important to know your lyrics, parts and have this stuff memorized. So, please visit and visit often!

September 22, 2014

HAIRSPRAY INFO...
Thank you so much to our amazing parent and student volunteers who built our Hairspray set on Saturday. We were done early and it is up! Now, all we have to do is paint! Our first painting day is this Saturday the 27th from 10-2:00. Bring a paintbrush or roller and get ready to work. 
Our second paint day will be Saturday, October 11th from 10-2. 
The show is going really well so far and everyone is so positive and hard working! I am proud of our CAPA family!
A couple of reminders...Hairspray t-shirt orders are due on October 3rd. 
We are also looking for businesses and family members to order program ads. Those are due October 13th. 
Special thanks to Doug Zavisza for putting together our program once again! You are the best!

ACTING STRAND NEWS...
1st hour students are working on our new venture...narration! "How it Came to Be" stories.
2nd hour...they are starting original two person scenes with directors. Already looking good!
5th hour...just completed radio dramas (they were fantastic) we are onto a new adventure today.
6th hour...Completed scripts for "Baggage." Today we will put it together. 

(photo above) First hour Acting One working on class machines. 

September 15, 2014 

Hello All...Ms. Hillman here. Well, we survived auditions. I am sure there have been tears of joy and tears of sadness over the casting...that is all a part of being in the arts. As an actor, I remember it well. 

It was a difficult process this year, so many people to choose from and it seemed that everyone was so hungry to be in this show. We have a fabulous cast and crew and remember...there are so many acting/singing and dancing opportunities coming up throughout the year. 

Set construction is this Saturday the 20th at 8:00 a.m. until we are done (7 pm.?). Please bring power tools if you can. I will feed people pizza. If you want to bring snacks and drinks, that is totally welcome. We are excited to get this set up! Saturday the 27th will be set brush and painting day. We ask that you bring your own paintbrushes and rollers. We will be in the theatre from 8-2 that day. 

The Acting classes are busy at work. Today, the second hour class presented their photo narratives. They did such a great job. First hour is rehearsing their music interps, they are a hard working group. Advanced Acting students are editing their radio scripts and will be performing those at the end of the week. Special Studies students are collaborating on the Biggest Show. Already the ideas are rolling and I am excited to see how the show comes along. 

That's it from Acting and the show for now. Thank you for checking in and feel free to comment!

Peace and Love, Ms. Hillman  

Hi everyone,
Mrs. Porter here, with some CAPA Vocal updates!  This has been a busy year already, we have been working hard since our first day back.  We started with getting to know each other and then dove right in, learning the audition music for "Hairspray".  The other strands came in and joined us and they all sounded so good singing together!  Congratulations to everyone who auditioned, it takes courage.  You are all so talented and the selection process was very difficult for myself, Ms. Hillman and Mrs. K.  Keep growing and make sure you keep auditioning as well!

This past week, we were able to begin selecting music for our first concert, the Classical and Folk Recital.  We have been starting basic vocal technique, which includes focusing on breathing, posture, mouth shape, and support among other things.  Most vocal students now have a piece that is their own for the recital.  If they do not, they will get one on Monday.  Many students are trying a foreign language piece or something more challenging in regards to vocal range and flexibility.  I am very happy with the pieces that have been chosen and expect a lot of growth in the coming weeks.

On Wednesday, our resident vocal coach, Noelle Jacquez came in and talked to the classes.  She is offering private voice lessons during lunch and for the 5th & 6th hour vocal students for the price of $20/half hour lesson.  This is a very reasonable rate and Ms. Jacquez is extremely accomplished and qualified.  If you are interested in lessons, contact me for more details.  Ms. Jacquez and I also presented our "Special Studies in Voice" unit that we will be working on with selected students from now until March.  We will be choosing students to work on additional music in class that is more complex and involves part-singing with other students.  We will stage the scenes after school briefly periodically and are looking to perform them at the middle schools for recruitment.  We are also planning a short performance in March, perhaps at an outside venue.

CAPA Vocal has two accompanists that work with us every week, Ms. Cimarelli and Mrs. Navarre.  On Friday, Ms. Cim and I presented our annual "How to work with an accompanist" performance.  It is always entertaining to watch all the ways someone can be rude or inconsiderate to our poor accompanist!  Ms. Cim is a good sport and the kids in class got very offended on her behalf at everything I put her through.  However, keep in mind that almost all of the scenarios are based in reality! We then had a great discussion about how to properly work with someone and shared stories of handling nerves and audition situations.

We are off to a great start this year and I look forward to working with all of my students.  Stay tuned for more updates and practice, practice!
Mrs. Porter

Classical and Folk Vocal Recital:
Tuesday, Oct. 14 & Wednesday, Oct. 15th at 7:00pm in the Black Box