Ultra-cool School in Monroe, NC

I had a great couple of days performing in Union County, N.C. last week. I found myself at the swanky Central Academy of Technology and Arts, a magnet high school in Monroe. It was one of those situations where school groups were bussed in to the beautiful campus auditorium. These were very young children attending the performances, so it was definitely time for our venerable production called "Tangle of Tales." It seems to work well for younger audiences because rather than one long story, it's a collection of shorter ones. Therefore, it tends to hold young attention spans better.

The day started with the obligatory fly by the school office. This had a little different feel, it being high school kids and all. This was immediately apparent when I encountered an earnest conversation between the school secretary and a high schooler with a "Hooters" T-shirt on. The student insisted that the t-shirt was part of his right to free speech, the secretary was just as sure that the Principal would make him turn the shirt inside out for now.

With the coveted "Visitor" sticker in place on my Grey Seal T-shirt, I headed around to the back of the theatre for the load in. Drama Teacher Larry Robinson met me there with his students to help roll in my stuff. What a luxury!

The two performances went swell enough. But what made this gig so neat was the high school students themselves. I got to meet and talk with Larry's Senior and Freshman drama classes. They were fantastic. What was even more refreshing was these same students were able to see the performance of Tangle of Tales too. It was cool to hear the reactions from the pre-schoolers and then the adult laughter of the Drama students as they responded to a different layer of humor. After the performance, I chatted with the Freshman class. They asked the most amazing questions about the performances, puppetry and life as a puppeteer. Then I asked them a question and received an amazing answer, "do you all have drama every day?" The answer? "We sure do!" Awesome!

So, hooray for Larry Robinson and the important work he is doing at the Central Academy of Technology and Performing Arts. Hooray to the Union County School System for implementing such a wondrous campus. But most of all, hooray to the students there. They were confident, very together and focused on their goals. It was great being with them.