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PAC: The Grand Opening
Photo Credit: Betsy Snow
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Written by Taylor Gananian
Inspired by the legendary oak trees surrounding Menlo-Atherton High School, M-A’s New Center for Performing Arts had its grand opening on October 9th. Free food, prompt tours, and student performances made Menlo-Atherton’s PAC opening a hit!
The whole Menlo-Atherton community was welcomed and they were amazed by the new complex. M-A hosted a casual barbecue before the tours of the theater at which hot dogs and drinks were served. “I like the oak tree inspiration a lot and the complex is beautiful,” said Robin Tobias, a Menlo-Atherton parent.
The green rooms for the performers were actually green and the theater was bursting with warm colors. “I love it! I love the view from the stage and the comfortable seats,” said Holly Cogan, an M-A student.
The red and orange seats were all individually air-conditioned. The men and women’s dressing rooms were created for true stars, and the acoustics were breathtaking. The audience was impressed by the new acoustics when Principal Matthew Zito demonstrated the feature that allows each person in the theater to hear every word spoken from the stage without the need for microphones.
The laser cut panels and the layered walls reduce the echo effect that hinders quality in many high school auditoriums and theaters. The entertainment portion of the opening consisted of the melodies of the guitar classes, the harmonious chorus, and a captivating drama skit. Zach Abt, Margaret Ringler, Kelly Davis, Nina Lozinski, and Ali Candlin all starred in the Greek skits. The audience erupted in applause after being serenaded by the soothing combination of chorus and guitar. Leaving the crowd in awe, M-A performers truly showed immense talent that was only enhanced by our brand new structure.
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Photo credit Leah Worthington
WEEKLY CAPTION CONTEST:
October 20th, 2009 at 2:49 pm
I think the PAC is cool, but also a waste of money. Even if we spent $10 million on the PAC, one third of the price it actually was, it still would’ve seemed like we’re paying too much. We need to spend the money on new textbooks, as most of the textbooks at M-A, such as the World Studies 1 & 2 textbooks, badly need to be replaced. Replacing books is much cheaper than constructing a building and redoing most of the M-A landscape, and I think the school would’ve been better of with new books. Also, we should have put some of the money toward supplies for athletics, instead of spending it on a building. If we paid so much for a building, it should at least be nice to look at. The side that is almost all glass is interesting to look at, but the front of it that faces the street is hideous.
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Kelly Davis Reply:
October 22nd, 2009 at 7:16 pm
Keep in mind what the purpose of the building is. For music, for choir, for the theater program. You try acting in a classroom for, say, Macbeth? The movie that Mr. McBlair showed us was really cool, but MA’s production wasn’t anything like that and it had a LOT to do with the fact that we didn’t have the space. This was probably the same reason why people weren’t compelled ot come see it- it didn’t appear to be a professional show. Football players get their lovely football field, swimmers get a really big swimming pool, basketball players get a nice big gym, and without any space two years ago, the drama department had to rehearse in this same gym while badmitton practice was going on. Half of our school campus is made up of athletic space. As for the textbooks, some of them aren’t as nice as others, but they still cover the material. Personally, I don’t find them that bad, but that’s just me (I’ll take anything). Now we have a nice big space for the performing arts, and hopefully this will give us an advantage to become just as great as our athletic and acedemic departments. Buildings cost a lot these days, but i have a feeling that the PAC is going to be well used by the performing arts as well as the community, and whoever else wants to use it.
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November 18th, 2009 at 7:37 pm
No offense to all the delusional Drama students but the PAC looks hideous. Every time my family or close family friends drive by MA and see it they burst into laughter. Schools are all knows for something different, for example hillview is known for the murals along all the walls. Well now MA will be known for the giant misshapen building that cost thousands of dollars.
I understand the purpose for the building was to go towards the drama and music department but I don’t think that our school should have gone to such great lengths. Do we really need to air condition each seat individually? Last year a large chunk of our teachers were fired because of budget cuts, we could have used some of the money from the PAC (or Piece A C*** as my mother likes to call it) to keep our teachers from being fired.
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December 1st, 2009 at 1:08 am
This is to Kelly,
I understand your point. And I think that at performing art center is something that the drama department needed in order to sustain an audience and I place to rehearse. But, you can’t compare the use of the PAC to that of the gym and the track. The gym is you of physical education classes, multiple sports, assemblies, rallies, and other functions. The same applies to the track and fields. The PAC in the other hand is only used by the drama department, and those who are willing to pay an absurd amount of money. The school itself is not even permitted to use the PAC for normal functions and assemblies. Furthermore, the majority of the student body has not even seen any benefit or purpose of the PAC. And to Ali’s point, the PAC stands out as a misshapen lump of metallic waste that honestly does not belong or fit in with the rest of M-A’s campus. When our school is struggling to supply a decent amount of text books to the student body and our country is going through a major recession, this seems wasteful to me. The last thing that should be on anyone’s mind is spending obscene amounts of money to create something that only serves a purpose for only about 40 students. Maybe I would be more agreeable to the PAC if everyone was allowed to use it, but that just isn’t the case.
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Kelly Davis Reply:
December 10th, 2009 at 10:51 pm
Kendall,
The PAC is used by the drama department, the choir, guitar class, and all of the bands. That’s many, many more than just 40 students. And the drama department itself is growing much larger,and there are certainly more than 40 students that participate. As I did tech for the fall play, The Rimers of Eldritch, I have been told that there have been events going on last week and this week, and I was asked to help out. Keep in mind that the building is does not only belong to the school, but the city as well, and this is why there are so many restrictions on the school. If the students of MA want to see the inside of the PAC, then they had an excellent oppurtunity when the drama department performed The Rimers of Eldritch, when the choir and guitar classes had a concert, and when the band had a concert. Not to mention the grand opening of the PAC. If that is not enough to satisfy the students, then they should get involved in the performing arts. Being stage manager for the fall play allowed me to spend hours and hours in the building, allowed me to walk across the cat walks and stand at the highest point in the building. It allowed me to learn about different tech instruments, and how to act on a professional stage. The PAC allows students to learn to work in a professional space, and provides entertainment for the community. As for the country being in a recession, I believe that the plan was established before we hit this crisis. Forgive me if I’m incorrect, but I don’t think that the school would have put so much money into the building if they knew we would hit a recession. And alright, some people find the building ugly. I want to say that (and this refers to Ali’s comment) 1)I have yet to meet a delusional drama student- they’re pretty insightful, as you need to be in order to act; 2) not all of the drama students think the building looks that glorious, either. I’m just one of the few who thinks it looks majestic, not ugly, so go ahead and call me delusional. That doesn’t mean you should judge every other drama student off of my opinions. (Back to Kendall)You are right, the PAC is not used as much as the track or the gym, but that doesn’t mean that it doesn’t serve a purpose. Mr. Maier said at the beginning of the choir concert a week ago, “Please help us support the arts. It allows success for kids who don’t normally succeed.” The PAC is used by at least 100 students who are passionate in what they do, who are passionate for their art. The students who use the PAC are incredibly thankful to use such a nice facility and are determined to make it worth all the money that was paid. I am one of these students, and I encourage anyone who would like to participate.
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