Middle School "Stories and Songs" Showcases Talented Students

To showcase Ranney’s Middle School Performing Arts Program, approximately 125 guests were treated to “An Evening of Stories and Songs” in RSPA Panther Hall on Friday, December 3, 2010. The event featured Ranney’s award-winning Forensics Club and Middle School Storytellers’ Club, a display of student-produced artwork and eighth grade vocalists from the Junior Tri-M Music Honor Society.

Within the walls of Panther Hall, attendees enjoyed fine performances from 27 Ranney School students. During the event, audience members heard "Swing Low, Sweet Chariot" and "Keep Your Lamps Trimmed and Burning" performed by special guests from the Lower School, the Fifth Grade Chorus. Throughout the show, the audience was entertained by several Junior Tri-M Music Honor Society members, who performed such songs as "Brand New Key," "A Charlie Brown Christmas (Medley)" and "Forever and Always," to name a few. Each year, the Tri-M Music Honor Society recruits students who have been enrolled in band or chorus for at least one semester and have good academic standing.

Between musical acts by the Lower School Chorus and Tri-M Music Honor Society, students from the Middle School’s Forensics Program and Storytellers’ Club entertained the audience with short stories like "Goldilocks," "Juha’s Nail," "Sleeping Beauty," "Billy Monster" and more. The focus of Ranney’s Forensics Program is to encourage vocal expression through dramatic interpretation.

Guests to "Stories and Songs" also enjoyed a show of innovative student artwork in the Panther Hall Art Gallery. These included two-dimensional designs in painting, drawing and printmaking, and three-dimensional projects in construction, sculpture and mask-making.

Not only does the Performing Arts Program at Ranney School allow students to see the world and its culture in new and exciting ways, but it also serves as a key component of a balanced education and self-discovery. In its first year, "Stories and Songs" proved to be a huge success in showcasing the talents of Ranney's versatile Middle School students.