Trips are Happening this Week and Next!

A reminder, bands and orchestras will be in Disneyland April 5-8. Choir is going to NYC April 12-16.

Break a leg, have fun, and represent Ballard Performing Arts well, students!

Band

Upcoming Band Performances

April 7 – Marching Band marches through Disneyland at 2:25 pm!

April 29 & 30 – Boats Afloat Jazz Combo

May 6 – CWU jazz festival, both jazz bands attending

May 23 – North High School band festival at Lincoln

June 2-4 – Honkfest. Time TBD.

June 4 – Joint concert with Wind Ensemble North Seattle College

June 7 – Symphonic Band performance with Whitman

June 8 – Final Spring Band Concert

June 13 – Final Jazz concert at the Royal Room, 5:30 load in, 6:30 downbeat

Marching Band Photos Ready to Order

You can view and order music group photos at the link below. There are two photos for Marching Band. Scroll through the photos to find your student's group photo. 

Link: https://v2.myproimages.com/rowlandstudio 

Code/password: BMU2223

Last Disney Marching Practice

The last marching band practice for Disney is today after school. These practices are preparation for the Disney performances and are required for students going on the trip. Rehearsals will be held immediately after school. No chaperones will be required today.

• Tuesday April 4, 3:45 - 5:15 pm

Disney Trip

Be sure to check your email today for reminders for the trip. Your student's bag MUST meet carry-on standards. We will not be checking any bags to our destination. We encourage your student to download the Disneyland app, which they can use to skip the lines, preorder food, and check wait times at rides.

Choir

Congratulations to the choirs for a fabulous day at the Elliot Bay Choir Festival! All three Ballard choirs earned Superior ratings of I, the highest possible score. Perhaps more importantly, choir students were kind, helpful, and supportive hosts to the other ten visiting choirs. See a video below!

Upcoming Dates

Tonight! - Tuesday, April 4 

NW Choral Showcase, 7-8:30 pm

Ballard Choirs will welcome feeder elementary and middle school choirs to the Ballard Gym for an evening of choral music. Click here to donate snacks or help volunteer for this event. Send in snacks with your choir student either this morning (have them drop off to Ms. Rowley’s office) or when they come to the event tonight. Call times for all choir students is 6 pm; elementary students will be arriving to warm up at 6:15 pm. 

Wednesday, April 12- Sunday, April 16

New York Trip

Important Reminders: 

• Departure - 4:30 am on Wed, April 12th at Alaska Airlines Check-In counter.
• Students traveling with the group will be checked in by a chaperone the day before and given boarding pass the morning of departure.
• Students are encouraged to pack lightly and only bring a carry-on bag if possible. (Please check the carry-on policy here). 
• Checking Bags - If a student needs to check a bag, please send them with a credit card (so they can check the bag home too.) They can check the bag the morning of the flight. 
• Students are asked to travel with a valid ID (school ID or driver’s license). Students 18 or older should have a state issued ID or passport.
• Food - Students will have time to buy breakfast/snacks at the airport. In NYC, A small breakfast will be provided each day as well as one main meal. Students should expect to be on their own for one other meal of the day ($20-$25 per meal).  
• We strongly suggest that you download the free app Trip Plans by Travefy to your device so that you can refer to the most recent version of the itinerary (as it will be adjusted in real time depending on delays, traffic, etc.). If you have printed a copy of the itinerary, please double check for any possible changes with the online itinerary. For ease, the app is linked below.

Trip Plans by Travefy - Apple App Store

Trip Plans by Travefy - Google Play Store

After you download the app, click the following link, and then select that you’d like to add this trip to your app: https://bit.ly/tripplansapp

After reading through the information, please reach out with any questions or concerns!

Friday, April 28

State Ensemble Contest

Two day event

CWU in Ellensburg

Vocal Jazz, Chamber Choir, and Tenor Bass Ensemble will perform and soloists will perform on Saturday April 29th.

*Thank you to the volunteers who have already offered to chaperone! We are still in need of a few drivers. Many of our current drivers are parents of students participating in solo competitions on Saturday, and can’t make the return drive. Please consider volunteering!  Email Jaimee at bpabchoirrep@gmail.com if you're able to help out with driving!

Saturday, April 29

BHS Foundation Fundraising Event

4-5:15 pm

Home of Cyndy Clegg in Edmonds (BHS Foundation Member)

Vocal Jazz performance

Students will organize their own transportation.

Wednesday, May 17

Chamber Choir performs at Bergen Place Park at 4:30 PM for Syttende Mai

Tuesday, May 30

OSPI Superintendent’s 50th Anniversary Art Show

During school day

Benaroya Hall

Vocal Jazz performance

Orchestra

Disney Trip - Meeting Recap

On March 20th, the Disney travel agent met with orchestra and band parents, students, and chaperones to go over the details of the trip. Staff discussed the trip itinerary and rules, including acceptable dress codes, mandatory group check-ins, and the requirement to stay in groups of 3 or more at all times. Students were also given their assigned flights and chaperones. If you were unable to attend this meeting, please reach out to your program rep or your student’s director to get handouts and other important information.

Theatre

For questions about Theatre Arts classes that meet during the school day, email Mr. Riley’s theater substitute, Ms. Indira Rampersad at igrampersad@seattleschools.org.

Theater Classes

Did you know we have theater classes at Ballard High School? The acting class is working on two and three person short scenes and will then move on to audition technique, resume writing, and playwriting with writing specialist Rachel Atkins.Theater tech are currently working on set design models. 

One Act Play Festival 

May 18, 19, & 20 - 7:30 pm

Auditions and casting for the one acts are complete and rehearsals begin this week.

This spring, six student directors have selected five plays to bring to the Ballard stage, all of which explore what it’s like when reality itself comes into question.

Elliot Jakupcak directs Sure Thing by David Ives, a comedy that follows two strangers in a coffee shop who navigate a conversation with something no one else gets: the chance to start over when you say the wrong thing.

Ella Papineau directs The Yellow Wallpaper by Cameron Colwell and Georgia Drinan. Based on the chilling short story by Charlotte Perkins Gilman, this play follows a new mother confined to her bed as she tries to make sense of the figure she keeps seeing in the pattern on her bedroom walls.

Autumn Bailey directs The Support Group from Hell by Jeffrey Harr, a dark comedy that follows a teen who joins a support group with members that are far more strange (and possibly supernatural) than she was expecting.

Izzy Rampersad and Milo Palmer co-direct The Hallmarks of Horror by Peter Bloedel. In this “whirlwind tour of horror tropes,” scientists attempt to explain what makes scary movies as scary as possible. The resulting demonstration is much more ridiculous than intended.

Up, All the Way Up? is a new play written and directed by Rose Champion, which follows a woman in the late 19th century as she writes the obituary for the peculiar and mysterious death of a millionaire on a mountain.

The district only pays for teachers’ salaries; everything else we have to raise or donate.

Tutta Bella Fundraising Results are In

Tutta Bella was a success. We raised $358. Thanks to all who ate for BPA. 

Spring Coffee Sales are Coming! April 26 - May 10

We will be partnering with Caffe Appassionato in Magnolia once again for this fundraiser. Orders can be placed online on the Schoolpay page during the sale. Coffee orders will be given to students at their music performance in June (June 1 for choir; June 6 for orchestra, June 8 for band). 

This is an important fundraiser for your student if they are currently a freshman, sophomore, or junior. They can apply funds raised toward the July payments for camps that happen the first weeks of school, program fees in the fall, etc. 

Leftover money that seniors have in their accounts go into the ASB account to the general fund unless you ask to have them transferred to a sibling. 

Food Donations and Volunteers Needed for April 4th, 7pm NW Choral Showcase

Ballard choirs will welcome feeder elementary and middle school choirs to the Ballard Gym for an evening of choral music. Please click here to sign up to help or donate some snacks or baked goods. Send any food donations in with your student at 6pm, the student call time.

Fundraising Chair Wanted 

We're looking for a point person to oversee our fundraisers next year. Our fundraisers are pretty well-established, and we will be forming committees for the major events, so this role is more of a project manager position to ensure planning and communication progress smoothly for the various events. Contact Kris Bulson at BPABfundraising@gmail.com for more info.

Social Media Help Wanted

Social media has become integral to all aspects of the BPA. Our students are ramping up with performances, trips, and visiting specialists.You can help highlight programs, get the word out about dine-outs, concerts, events, and fundraising, and use social media tools to tell the story of our fundraising efforts through reels, stories, and posts. The social media team needs you! This is easy-to-post content lifted from our weekly newsletter. Learn how to use the pro-version of the popular software Canva and get the inside scoop on everything that is coming down the pike with our programs. Please reach out to Jeannette Chen at bpabsocial@gmail.com - she has a graduating senior and would love to train an enthusiastic parent who wants to keep the momentum going!

Communications Chair Wanted

We’re looking for a parent to corral our communications that feed our newsletter, website, social media and other communications channels. You’ll work with BPA president and board members and directors to make sure parents are informed through the newsletter. Work with parent volunteer newsletter editor, social media team, website coordinator, and publicity volunteers. It’s a great way to stay on top of all the goings on! Contact Rachel Hart Rios at bpabcommunications@gmail.com.

Spaghetti Dinner 2024 Committee Forming Now!

Now that you have experienced the joyful community vibe of the Spaghetti Dinner event, why not step up to help run the event next year? It would be ideal to form the committee now while the event is fresh in our minds to help make planning easier for next year. If you are interested, email bpabpresident@gmail.com.

Senior Salutes are Coming!

Seniors–it’s your time in the spotlight to be recognized for all the work you’ve done over the last four years. Stay tuned for a link to a brief questionnaire to fill out and submit with a favorite photo from your time in band, choir, orchestra, or theatre.

Check out the choir performances from the Elliot Bay Choir Festival!

Check out past performances any time on our YouTube and Vimeo channels.

Whitman Music Program Needs High School Choral Student Volunteers

Whitman Middle School is looking for students with a singing background to help our middle schoolers learn songs for their Musical Variety Show. Students earn service hours and can include on college applications. Weekly volunteers will earn the title of "Music Director" and volunteers who can only make it now and then will have the title of "Vocal Coach." Whitman’s music program needs our support and especially needs weekly Music Directors. The choir rehearses Mondays from 3:45-5 pm and Wednesdays from 2:30-4:30 pm. 

For details about the production at Whitman, click here. For more information about this volunteer opportunity, click here.