High School Musical

with directors

Tom Freeland, Beth Hochuli and Cathy Hogan

Campbell Savona hosted High School Musical last spring.  It was a big hit! According to Tom Freeland,

We broke our attendance record by almost 500 people. We exposed 1795 people to the arts via High School Musical, including 500 elementary students at one performance. The students that learned the dance are still talking about how it was the best experience, and the most fun, they have ever had on stage.

Below are some photos depicting the ensemble as they appeared on stage.

Tom Freeland,  director,  graduated with a BFA in Graphic Design from SUNY Fredonia and has worked in the design profession for 16 years at firm in Corning. He started performing on the stage in 5^th grade but it only lasted a couple years.

In 1992,  Tom started helping Cambell-Savona School with their musicals doing set design and working backstage. Since 2005, he has co-directed the musical with Cathy Hogan and been responsible for set design and technical direction of the shows. Tom enjoys working with the kids, helping to develop their skills and bringing the show to life on stage. The rush of the audience is always exciting.

According to Tom,  Art fosters creativity and helps explore emotions. It is interpreted differently by every audience - creating various feelings and emotions - one piece of art can represent a thousand diverse responses and interpretations. Art education is important for the exposure that it gives to kids to creatively express themselves - whether it be through painting, drawing, dance, theater or other aspects of art, this inner creativity can be expressed in ways that are personal to the artist and enjoyed by their audience.

Cathy Hogan has a Masters of Science in Education from SUNY Cortland. She is part of the Cortland Chorus/Madrigal Group and is section leader, soloist and conductor of various vocal organizations, including Elmira Cantata Singers and the First Congregational United Church of Christ Choir of Corning, New York.  She has conducted twenty high school musicals and has been the featured soloist for various community organizations and clubs.

She has been performing from an early age on stage in numerous high school and community theatre productions

The thing she likes best  about making art or performing is providing an audience with an opportunity to experience the beauty of music, dance and drama.

Art is important for Cathy because it uplifts the spirit and makes one feel better as a person. Arts in education fosters creativity, challenges students’ minds, and offers opportunities not otherwise available in an academic world.

Beth Hochuli, choreographer,  is a 2003 graduate of the State University of New York College at Brockport with a Bachelor of Fine Arts Degree in Dance.  She has worked with members of the Limon Dance Company, former Bill T. Jones,  dancer Larry Goldhuber, at Marah Dance Theater, and the Liz Lerman Dance Project.  She has had the opportunity to perform in venues such as Virginia Commonwealth University, The Eastman School of Music, The American Dance Festival, The Yard, and most recently, at the Julia Richmond Education Complex Theater in NYC.  She currently teaches at 171 Cedar Arts Center in Corning, NY.

She started quite late for a dancer, at the age of 10.     

The thing she likes best about performing is that there is an adrenaline that accompanies performing that people who have never been on stage can’t understand, and while she now teaches more than she performs, it’s great to see her students have that experience and see what it’s like to be in front of an audience.  One of the most rewarding things as a dance teacher is seeing someone finally master a step they have been working on, or seeing 30 kids all do the same thing at the same time.

Art allows people to look at things in a way that they otherwise may not see them.  It lets the ordinary expand beyond what you see everyday, but it also lets people explore what can only be imagined.  The performing arts are often an escape for people

Arts education, particularly in smaller schools, is often overlooked as a substantial program.  It is an important part of our culture and students need to be exposed to different art forms as much as possible so they can at least learn to appreciate it, not necessarily always like it.  Beth Hochuli

CONGRATULATIONS TO CAMPBELL SAVONA HIGH SCHOOL FOR GIVING YOUR STUDENTS AND COMMUNITY THIS WONDERFUL OPPORTUNITY,  NOT ONLY AS ACTORS,  BUT THEATER-GOERS!

(Stay tuned next fall as we meet some of the teachers and administrators at Campbell Savona!)