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PROM IS REALITY ENOUGH FOR ME | ||
by Jackie Klapak STEPPING UP TO THE PLATE!
This month has been quite interesting for me. I recently went on a trip to Disney World with the Highland High School Varsity and Advanced Girls Choirs. I can honestly say that my week long trip was, without a doubt, one of the absolute best times of my entire life. Not only did our sixty-two person group experience great parks Universal Studios, Downtown Disney, MGM, Blizzard Beach, Animal Kingdom, and Magic Kingdom, we also performed at Epcot! My family and I had been to Disney World when I was younger, but when I was down there now, at age sixteen, I still felt the “Disney Magic,” if you will, and it was even stronger. It’s just amazing how, when you’re in the right environment and surroundings, your cares and worries seem to slip by you. Of course, that is not the case for all people. The day that our choirs performed at Epcot (which has a very nice Beatles exhibit in the fabricated “England”) we gathered around the massive lake, along with the rest of the park, to watch Illuminations, the nightly fireworks show. Our group had plopped down on the concrete in the middle of the crowd, which was also seated. When the firework show started, the people in front of our group stood up, which made it virtually impossible for our group to see anything. I, naturally, along with my friends, stood up also, and when we did, the rows of people behind us started yelling that they no longer were able to see. Rather than standing up like the rest of the audience, the people behind us started chucking ice cubes at our group. My friend Ryan pointed out that it was so ironic that Epcot’s focal theme is “World Unity” and yet the lazy pig-headed group (which consisted of adults) behind us figured that pelting us with ice cubes would give them their way and resolve their problems and set a great example for all of the youngsters around. (Note the sarcasm.) I thought about what had happened later that night as I was falling asleep. The people of this world wonder why things never go right for them — do they ever realize that they bring many of their problems on themselves? People get so sidetracked with their own little problems and forget about the big picture. Not being able to see the fireworks wasn’t going to bring about the end of the world, and I’m sure that if the people behind us had calmly approached us and had asked us to sit down, the problem would have been settled in one way or another rather than both ends feeling indignation and animosity towards one another. I’ve only been on this crowded sphere for a relatively short time, but along my way so far, I’ve found that being nice gets you further in life and makes the ride a bit less bumpy and more enjoyable. Older people tend to point their fingers automatically in teenagers’ faces, don’t realize that they should perhaps give a glance or two into the looking glass, because they quite often are even bigger culprits for the imbalances occurring among groups of people. I tip my hat to the adults of this world who actually do care about teens and teens’ opinions and who treat teens like the sensitive and developing young adults they really are. Speaking of world peace and unity, I really enjoyed The Kingston Trio’s compilation CD of their two albums, Here We Go Again! and At Large. Folk music often deals with protest about censorship, rights, wars, racial segregation, and the general problems of this world as a whole. This CD had songs that mainly dealt with the simple pleasures of life. It was great to kick back and envision the scenes this talented group portrayed. I felt more in touch with myself after listening to this music. I had decided to check out this particular CD after seeing the movie A Mighty Wind, and I’m glad to have had a decent taste of folk music. I would recommend this CD to anyone — folk music isn’t all that foreign, either; everyone knows a folk song or two. Who doesn’t know the song “Kum Ba Yah”? Folk music is the essence of traditional American music — it’s who we are, as Americans, and what we stand for. Moving on…this month, my CD to listen to, is The Strokes’ latest, Room on Fire, released last October. As this is May, I’d like to acknowledge a very famous rock star who has had an immense effect on me: Pete Townshend, who will be fifty-nine years old on May 19th. As a teenager with a busy and sometimes stressful life, I’ve found it easy to escape my problems by listening to The Who. Although Pete wrote The Who’s songs decades ago, it’s simple to identify with his music, which is always passionate and driven, no matter whether the topic is about teens wasting their lives away or mod-driven fashions and not fitting in—it’s true music. I have no single favorite Who song (or album, for that matter), but I absolutely cannot live without the entirety of Quadrophenia, and Tommy is an ingenious masterpiece. Listening to early Who stuff such as the songs from their albums My Generation and Magic Bus presents the perfect haven for teens who are trying to figure out life. (Or to anyone else who feels he or she needs to straighten out his or her life, as well.) The Who’s music also equals sheer pleasure — I find few things better than closing the door to my room and being overpowered by the combination of John Entwistle’s thunderous bass, Keith Moon’s spasmodic drumming, Townshend’s screaming guitar, and (sigh!) Roger Daltrey’s bold voice above it all. Check out the CD Spins section, where you can read my review of a Who tribute CD. I’d like to send a personal thank you to my friend Ben, who not only introduced me to the world of The Who, but to rock music as a whole. You’ll rock on forever, Ben! On May 7th, 8th, and 9th, you might want to come see “Carousel”, at Highland High School. On Friday the 7th and Saturday the 8th, the show begins at 7:00 pm, and on Sunday the 9th, it begins at 2:00pm. This show would be well-worth your time—the cast has been arduously laboring over lines, blocking, choreography, and music for months. (Sarah Lounges has a leading role –– that of Carrie ––and I’ll be playing my trumpet in the pit orchestra, too, FYI.) I hope to see you there! Thanks for reading, and, as always, feel free to email me at: jackie@midwestbeat.com .
Check back next month! Cheerio! | ||
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