As the stage manager of this year’s winter musical Hairspray, I have witnessed lots of hard work that others may not have the opportunity to see. Walking through the winding maze of corridors and spaces in Hoyt Hall, I come across all of the departments that contribute to making the show happen.

In my position, I provide assistance to Director Mark Howland. This often involves communicating with the various crews in backstage departments.

Behind the stage is the workshop, where the tech crew can be found. This student group, directed by Mr. Van Voris and Mrs. Kistler, splits stage time with the actors so that the set pieces and lights can be installed. This crew works to create elaborate designs that can create a realistic atmosphere for the production.

During the show, some of the crew controls the spotlights from the catwalk of the Fireman Performing Arts Center. All the communication is done with each other through headsets to cue the lighting during the performance.

Will Walker, this year’s lighting designer, says that one of his favorite parts of tech crew is watching the actors from the catwalk as they hang the lights.

“[The experience] is so cool because the best view in the house is only available to us,” said Walker. He also enjoys watching when the “techies” hang the curtain because they “have to climb off the catwalk onto unsteady boards to hang it,” which he calls “dangerous and terrifying, but funny, nonetheless.”

Occasionally, I head up to the costume room where five Tabor students work with costume designers Annemarie Fredericks and Ruth Finnieas they design the outfits for all cast members in the show. With a huge cast of 43 students, they have a lot of work to do.

At the beginning of rehearsals, the costume crew takes the measurements of all actors and develops a spreadsheet of all the roles that each person plays. After taking measurements and shopping for supplies, the costume crew creates the pieces and sorts them for each actor. On the night of each show, this group does the makeup for each actor to make them into their character.

The costume crew achieves impressive transformations. This year’s production involves the use of a padded body suit to add ‘bulk’ to the plus-size main character Tracy Turnblad, and making a male student into an adult female character.

The media arts classes are also a part of the preparation. They are working on a unique poster for the show with photos of some of the actors as their characters.

The public is welcome to come and see Hairspray on February 19, 20, or 21 in Hoyt Hall to admire all of the hard work from the technical crew, costume crew, and the actors.

By Julia O’Rourke

A central part of the student experience at Old Rochester Regional High School is PowerSchool, a website designed to make accessing your grades easier. PowerSchool is also used by teachers, who manage their classes and mark grades for students on the website. The site definitely provides a great service to students by allowing them to access their grades at the click of a button – but how do students really feel about the program?

One concern that teachers have raised about PowerSchool is the excessive usage by some students anxious to see their grades. Juniors Laura Casey and Brianna Grignetti differ in their usage habits of PowerSchool, but neither says it is excessive.

“I probably log in about four times a week,” said Casey, a contrast to Grignetti’s log-in habits.

“Not a lot, maybe once a week,” said Gignetti.

Both students agree, though, that being able to see your grades whenever you want is the biggest advantage of PowerSchool. Freshman Sam Ellis expanded upon that, saying that being able to see your grades anytime is better because “you don’t have to go through your teachers or wait until the end of the term.”

Sophomore Eric Souza described PowerSchool as “a guided tool for student and instructor alike, an amazing and unique opportunity that all schools should access.” Souza had a few ideas of his own on how to improve PowerSchool.

“It would be nice if they had showed your percentile or had a percentage scale on certain assignments,” suggested Souza. “Then you could see where you are compared to other students in your class level and grade.”

Souza uses PowerSchool a bit more than Casey and Grignetti. He defends his position, saying, “I need to know exact GPA changes and grade changes, and check to see if there’s any slip-ups or confusion.”

Possible mistakes or confusion over a student’s actual grade, said Grignetti, concern her.            “The worst is when teachers haven’t updated grades and it’s the end of the term,” said Grignetti, specifying this as her main issue. “Sometimes, you don’t know your true grade.”

Some students thought that, despite the convenience and helpfulness of PowerSchool, it does not particularly improve the relationship between students and teachers.

“It makes you more paranoid about your grades,” Casey said.

“Students nag teachers about putting in grades right away, and it becomes annoying for teachers,” stated Grignetti.

Sam Ellis disagreed, saying, “You can go to your teacher after looking on PowerSchool and ask them about the grading on a certain piece of work.”

Although there is some disagreement on exactly how it affects students and teachers, students are very vocal about PowerSchool and, in general, recognize just how valuable and useful the program is. As students and teachers continue to analyze the pros and cons of PowerSchool, we could see a change in usage habits and grading tendencies in the near future.

By Patrick Briand