Fleetwood Music Department Takes Hoftsra

This year’s music department trip was to New York and had students visit and work with directors at Hofstra University.

This destination was decided because of a contact at Hofstra university; this gave students the ability to work with directors at the university and learn from these professionals while they were there. Students enjoyed the experience and gained quite a bit of knowledge from the directors.

“Hofstra was fun.  The directors they had set up for all of us were fantastic, and I think everyone learned something new,” senior Noah Barwinski said

The students and faculty schedule was pretty full. On Saturday, they visited the Metropolitan Museum of Art, where the students could spend time taking in the art and exhibits of the famous museum. Sunday morning, they went to work with some directors at Hofstra University and checked out the school while they were there.  Students learned much from the experience and came away with new information

On Sunday night, they saw a stage play called “Once on This Island,” a story about a peasant girl who saves the life of and falls in love with a royal man.  Most of the music in the show was done by the cast and featured effective stage use and speedy costume changes. The show was also done in an ovular theater, which allowed for more crowd interaction throughout  

Students seemed generally pleased with the show.

“It was unique to see a show where the audience is all around the stage, and I really enjoyed it,” senior Cole Schappell said.

To end the trip, the school had planned a breakfast cruise for the students on Monday morning; however, due to harsh weather, the ship could not leave the port. The students still got to eat on the boat and even had a dance floor with a DJ!

“I thought it was an interesting experience, but the sacrifice was not worth the reward,” Senior Zach Warren said.