Week One... and Halfway Done!

a post from Jeff

One week in our back pockets.
Two to go.
Kids screamed when I said "Ten Days 'till we're in the Duke on 42nd Street!"
Mark your calendars!

Feels like it's been a month with the kids.
In a good way.

They really are working under professional conditions
Original Script
Live accompanist
Original arrangements
Professional Choreography
5 minute breaks
And...oh yeah...professional, Air-Conditioned Studios!

We put the first 30 mins on it's feet today
Looking to make transitions smooth
While the kids begin to see their work pay off.
Characters are just starting to be discovered

Kayla is coming out of her shell,
Taking on the brief role of a NYC construction worker.

Tareake is slicing up his dream dance number,
As a hip-hop lovin' superstar.

All while Kirra is expressing her passion for acting,
As she sings Pink's "Don't Let Me Get Me"
(A Beautiful arrangement by Jonnah!)

Blog ya later... but first check out this FlipVideo of the kids rehearsing the opening number!

movie captured by FlipVideo

Proud of Them

a post from Lori

BLOG
Pronunciation:
\ˈblo'g, ˈbläg\
Etymology:
short for Weblog
: a Web site that contains an online personal journal with reflections, comments, and often hyperlinks provided by the writer; also : the contents of such a site

Well here I go, my very first blog entry ever, anywhere! So glad you are all here for the big occasion!

I spent the week going back and forth between our two locations. (Can’t wait for the building to open, where we can be under one roof.) Seeing our newest group of students, 35 strong, exhausted, exhilarated, striving, courageous, totally courageous. Pure flame this group, burning bright and strong. Beautiful Malik saying to me “I have never worked this hard, or been so tired, but I love it! I’m not giving up.”

Then head downtown to watch our oldest of students. I listen to the opening song of the musical that they will perform in three short weeks. I know each voice, each student, every story. I know them so well. And they know me well too. When they finish singing, they all look over, have they done it? Yes, I can’t contain them, the tears. They beam with pride; my beautiful, wonderful students know they have made me happy. Onward.

Qualities of a Leader

This week the youngest members of RBKids, Team Bravo, were asked what qualities they thought made a good leader... here's a bit of their insight.

Hip-Hop

movie captured by FlipVideo

This summer, Teams Excel and Broadway (7-9th grades) will be putting on RBKid's first-ever full musical production of a new show inspired by the stories of our RBKids students. Reflecting the modern subject matter, the kids will be performing popular music and dances, reinvented for the stage by our RBKids staffers. Here's a video from the first week of rehearsals as the kids learn a high-energy hip-hop routine.

Field Trip

a post from Lindsay

I’m usually the one in the office all day at RBKids – and I am thrilled when I have the opportunity to take a “field trip” to go and see the kids at rehearsal. (Side note – once we are in Maravel Arts Center, I will be able to simply take a trip up and down some stairs to see the kids - these days it’s a trip through Times Square and down the street to the rented studio space!)

So yesterday, I fought the Times Square tourist crowd and made it to the studios to talk to the kids about their upcoming Walkathon. It’s their chance to raise money to give back to Rosie’s Broadway Kids. They’ll be walking the 6 mile loop around Central Park this summer and are charged with the task of soliciting sponsors for their walk! Last year, they raised over $1700 at their walkathon – this year, we’re hoping to break $2000! I think they can do it.

Upon entering the 16th floor of the building where the studios are, I began hearing snippets of Broadway auditioners, stomping feet, “Do you have a headshot?” and “Next!” up and down the hallways. This space was full of theater professionals – in the 20+ studios, RBKids was just one group of many.

I walked into the studio to the sounds of our kids singing “Welcome to My Life” by the group Simple Plan. The kids - passionate, mature, talented – sang out as they rehearsed the staging to the number. Their show this year includes songs from the popular vocabulary – Alicia Keys, Simple Plan, Pink – that our staff musicians have artfully re-arranged to fit our kids and our show. This year, they’re singing what they know, about what they know. It’s moving, and it’s gonna be good.

Day Five

a post from Jeff

High above Eighth Ave.
Crammed into a studio on the 16th floor
Window washers outside
Must've heard our big, harmonious sound!

Kids are realizing how big this is going to be
This show is really about 'them'
Daniel said he felt 'goosebumps'
I think we all did.

Rhapsody and Dana are hip-hop idols
Kids eyes are wide-open
when they learn the steps.

A third of the show complete
Almost on schedule!

More to teach,
More to learn,
More to discover.

End of Day Two

a post from Jeff

Energetic kids
Like sponges
So much to learn
New music,
four & five part harmonies
Lots of pencils
Lots of erasers
Lots of eagerness

Hope that it all sticks over 4th
So far, they are doing their work.

Next step, singing plus staging.

It's what they love to do.