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The Ballard High School Playmakers are pleased to present The Secret Garden, a heartwarming story of redemption and growth, March 16, 17, and 18 and March 24, 25, and 26. This classic of children’s literature, written by Frances Hodgson Burnett, was first published in 1911 and has delighted generations ever since. The Secret Garden Musical is a reimagining of the classic tale, replete with ghosts and intrigue, and is a sweet celebration of the healing powers of nature. The beautiful, sweeping score was written by Grammy Award winning composer Lucy Simon, sister of Carly Simon. The script and lyrics were written by Tony Award and Pulitzer Prize winner Marsha Norman.

Follow the young orphan, Mary Lennox, whose journey of recovery from isolation and loss begins when she is sent to live with her uncle on his country estate and meets the down-to-earth people of the Yorkshire moor. Shepherded by a chorus of ghosts, Mary discovers a hidden garden which harbors its own secrets. In the garden she soon begins to thaw and grow like the small spring shoots breaking through the hard ground. Through Mary, the magic of the garden spreads to her uncle and cousin as they begin to confront the grief that has kept them locked inside.

Ballard High School’s The Secret Garden is directed by Eia Waltzer; Indira Rampersad is the assistant director and accent/vocal coach; musical direction is by BHS choir director Courtney Rowley and choreography by Eia Waltzer. BHS band director, Jay Gilespie, will conduct the pit orchestra. For more details about the musical, visit the Ballard Performing Arts website.

Tickets

$20 for adults

$15 for seniors

$10 for students.

Order tickets at https://www.showtix4u.com/.

Spring Trips Chaperone Meetings and Required Forms

If you are chaperoning for the spring trips for band, orchestra, or choir and have not already done so, make sure you complete the SPS online volunteer application by early March at the latest. Be sure you sign up as a 'Category B' chaperone. Also, note that there is an additional required form for your emergency contact information. 

Orchestra and Band Disney Chaperones

Mr. Gillespie and Mr. Valdez have scheduled a mandatory chaperone meeting for Saturday March 18th in the band room at 5 pm. They will go over chaperone expectations and SPS trip policy rules. Chaperones will be assigned students at this time, so at the trips meeting on Monday 3/20, families will know who is in charge of their student(s).

NYC Choir Trip Chaperones

The chaperone meeting for the choir trip to NYC will be on Tuesday, March 16, at 5:30 pm.

Trips Meeting for Parents and BPA Boosters Meeting March 20

The March in-person booster meeting, originally scheduled for Tuesday March 7th, will now take place on Monday March 20, in the library. Booster board business will begin at 6 pm. At 7 pm, the Disney travel agent will be in the PAC for orchestra and band parents, students, and chaperones to go over the details of the trip. The choir trip information meeting will continue in the library. It's very important for all students who are attending these trips and their parents to attend this meeting.

Band

Upcoming Band Performances

March 11- Brass Band plays at Ballard Commins Park reopening, 3-4 pm 

April 2 – Brass Band plays at Swanson’s Nursery at 11:00 am

May 4 or 5 – CWU jazz festival, day trip for both jazz bands

May 23 – North High School band festival at Lincoln

June 2-4 - Honkfest. Time TBD.

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

Disney Marching Practices

Please mark calendars for additional marching band practices. These practices are preparation for the Disney performances and are required for students going on the trip. Rehearsals will be held immediately after school and a few will require parent chaperones for marching in the streets. Please use the SignUp Genius to choose a volunteer spot.

• Thursday March 16
• Friday March 17 (chaperones required)
• Friday March 24 (chaperones required)
• Friday March 31 (chaperones required)
• Tuesday April 4 (chaperones required)

March 25th Pep Band Performance

Mark your calendars. The Pep Band has been invited to perform at the "Running of the Beavers" on March 25th at Golden Gardens from 8-9:30 am. Logistics for the performance to follow.

Be the Ultimate Band Booster – Become a Band Rep!

Our band rep has a senior this year and we need to find a new parent band representative liaison to help Mr. Gillespie communicate with families, organize field trips, and support the marching band. Sharing this role with another parent is a great way to go and it’s a super fun volunteer position. You’ll work in tandem with the jazz band rep, and that position has been filled. We’re hoping to find volunteers for next year now to shadow our current reps this year to learn the ropes. Contact Carol at bpabbandrep@gmail.com.

Choir

Congratulations Concert Choir!

Congratulations to Concert Choir on a beautiful performance at the PLU Choral Invitational. Stay tuned for YouTube videos of the event!

Upcoming Dates

Sunday, March 12

Concert Choir rehearsal with Choral Arts Northwest

7:00 pm – 8:00 pm

Sammamish High School

Thursday, March 16

NYC Choir trip chaperone meeting

5:30 pm

Sunday, March 19

Concert Choir performance with Choral Arts Northwest

1:30 pm Call time

4:00 pm Concert

Edmonds Center for the Arts

Concert Choir will be collaborating with Choral Arts Northwest for this amazing performance! Families are encouraged to attend the March 19th performance in Edmonds. Entry fee is "pay as you’re able." For more information, see: https://www.choralartsnw.org/season/#march

Tuesday, March 28

Elliott Bay Regional Choir Festival @ Ballard HS, all choir classes

During the school day. More information to follow.

Friday, April 28

State Ensemble Contest

All day event

CWU in Ellensburg

Vocal Jazz, Chamber Choir, and Tenor Bass Ensemble will perform.

*We will need approximately 5-6 parent volunteers to drive carpools to Ellensburg and back. This pertains to students only participating with their ensemble. If your child is also performing a solo and staying overnight, they will need to arrange their own transportation back. Please 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.

Tuesday, May 30

OSPI Superintendent’s 50th Anniversary Art Show

During school day

Benaroya Hall

Vocal Jazz performance

Concert Choir to Perform in "Considering Matthew Shepherd" March 19 

Choral Arts Northwest presents a staged performance of Craig Hella Johnson’s Considering Matthew Shepard in collaboration with Seattle area high schools and LGBTQ+ choirs. Composed in 2016 by Craig Hella Johnson, this dramatic oratorio depicts the story of Matt, a 21-year-old gay student at the University of Wyoming who was murdered in a 1998 hate crime. The music takes us on a journey of Matt’s story with music ranging from Bach to musical theatre, from country to soul, inviting us to come together as a community and to expand our care and empathy for one another, no matter our differences.

Performance dates and times:

Saturday, March 18, 2023, 7:30 pm

Inglemoor High School, 15500 Simonds Rd NE, Kenmore, WA 98028

Guest choirs:

• Sammamish High School Chamber Choir, Ryan Hyde, Director
• STANCE – Seattle Trans and Nonbinary Choral Ensemble, Kaelee Bolme, Director
• Woodinville High School Concert Voices, Joseph Mikkelson, Director

Sunday, March 19, 2023, 4:00 pm

Edmonds Center for the Arts, 410 4th Ave N, Edmonds, WA 98020

Guest choirs:

•  Ballard High School Concert Choir, Courtney Rowley, Director
•  Puget Soundworks, Miriam Anderson, Artistic Director

Choral Arts NW has moved to a "pay as you're able" pricing structure in order to allow anyone from any economic status to attend our concerts. Please choose a ticket price based on your ability to pay and your desire to help CANW bring its music to anyone and everyone. Thank you! For more information, see https://www.choralartsnw.org/season/#march.

Orchestra

Chamber Orchestra Trip to Central Washington University Orchestra Festival March 11th

Chamber Orchestra has been accepted to the Central Washington University Orchestra Festival! The orchestra will perform, work with a clinician, listen to other high school orchestras, and listen to the CWU Orchestra perform.

Schedule:

• Meet at Ballard HS –10:00 am. Bring a lunch to eat on the bus or when we arrive at CWU (Ellensburg). We’ll have some time to get situated and find our warm up space when we arrive.
• Performance time – 1:40 pm.
• CWU Orchestra Concert – 3:30 pm.
• We will depart after the concert at about 4:30 pm.

Chamber Orchestra SPS Northwest Region Pathways Concert March 21st

Chamber Orchestra has been invited to take part in the SPS Northwest Region Pathways Concert. On Tuesday, March 21 at 7:00 pm, we will join other area elementary, middle, and high schools in a combined concert that serves to encourage young students in orchestra to continue through high school! More details to come soon.

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.

The Secret Garden Musical Production Update

Students and the crew are staying in touch via GroupMe and the cast calendar. 

For questions contact director Eia Waltzer at eiaradio@yahoo.com.

How Theatre Families Can Help Support the Musical

Volunteer to support the musical! 

We need lots of volunteers to help run the musical. Please look at the sign up genius

and volunteer for whatever you can. If you indicated an offer of help on the T-shirt form that you filled out many weeks ago, you have already been added to the sign up genius and Sally (bpabevents@gmail.com) has contacted you, unless your form was illegible or incomplete! If you need to change your offer of help, please do so in the sign up genius. 

Buy your tickets and save your seats – tickets are on sale now!

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

Goodwill Fill-a-Truck Event - Sat March 18

Time for some spring cleaning! Start gathering your items to donate at our last "Fill-a-Truck" event of this school year on Saturday, March 18 from 9 am - 12 pm in the north parking lot of campus. For every trailer we fill, our programs receive $600 (there are two trucks at each event),

Volunteers are needed! Sign up for a shift here.

March Dine-Out Madness at Tutta Bella

Our next dine-out lasts ALL week long, March 26-30. Mark your calendars!

• Use the coupon code EasyAsPieBPABoosters at checkout.
• Code is valid Sunday, March 26 – Thursday, March 30.
• Dine-in or order delivery, takeout, or curbside from tuttabella.com.
• 20% of sales will be donated to Ballard Performing Arts Booster Club.

Volunteers are needed for the Goodwill event March 18 

Students can earn service hours and parents are encouraged to participate. Tasks include sorting, unloading cars, and traffic control. Sign up for a shift here.

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!

Band Rep Needed

Our band rep has a senior this year and we need to find a new parent band representative liaison to help Mr. Gillespie communicate with families, organize field trips, and support the marching band. Sharing this role with another parent is a great way to go and it’s a super fun volunteer position. You’ll work in tandem with the jazz band rep, and that position has been filled. We’re hoping to find volunteers for next year now to shadow our current reps this year to learn the ropes. Contact Carol at bpabbandrep@gmail.com.

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.

Did you miss the amazing Symphonic Orchestra performance at Wintergrass as part of the Wintergrass Youth Orchestra? Keep an eye out for videos coming soon on the Wintergrass YouTube channel!

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