Greetings!

Last night Burgundy on Broadway: Dreams and Magic debuted to a packed and enthusiastic house of proud parents, grandparents, teachers and friends.

Burgundy on Broadway (BoB), a thematic musical revue, engages sixth-graders in the first of three successive Middle School full-class performing arts productions. After months of rehearsals, the students share this musical story they've created with the community at large. There is active problem-solving in figuring how to best interpret musical and dramatic material, while capitalizing on the strengths of a particular class and parent-student-teacher collaboration.

Each year, Cathy Manley develops a framework for the BoB performance by identifying the songs and theme. With support from Cathy, students identify ways they'd like to participate. All will sing, but not all will have solos, for instance. Some may feel more comfortable with a narration, a dance or a puppet show. This year, some are playing clarinet. Others are playing a Quidditch match or enacting a Muppet-themed scene. Students stretch their performance limits with plenty of nurturing guidance.

Meanwhile, parents are critical team members, too: parents often take leadership in set design, lighting and production, costume work, and so on. In many of these cases, students are working directly with their parents to accomplish a common goal, as they were this year in a weekend father-son set-design date.

Through it all, an eclectic soundtrack helps parents and students bond as they listen to the songs over and over at home, in the car, at night and through weekends. Both parents and students are exposed to unfamiliar music in the process. And no matter the genres or eras of the music, each year the crowds appreciate the selections and often hum or clap along during performances.

Even more than an embodiment of progressive, hands-on learning, BoB is an example of music bringing different generations and different experiences together. I extend a heartfelt "congratulations" and "thank you" to all of the students, parents and teachers who have made this year's BoB a great show and a magical learning experience. A special thanks goes out to choreographer Adrienne Magnuson and parent producers Amy Heist and Holly Sloan.

I encourage all of you to come see tonight's final performance.

Jeff Sindler
Head of School