March was a month that was filled  Thunderbirds and Pink Ladies. Both Curtis and  its feeder school, IS 61 performed the show Grease within two weeks of each other.

IS 61 was first followed by Curtis.  Since the Curtis drama program is full of IS 61 alumni they pitched in to help out their younger counterparts.  In return, the junior high cast came out in full force to see the Curtis production.

Samara Lugo, a cast member from Curtis and an alumni of I.S. 61 said, ”We gave pointers to the student performers of I.S. 61 on how they could improve their acting on stage.”

Robyn De’Chabert also a Curtis cast member said, “When watching the show I saw future talent that could be great here at Curtis. I feel like the kids will grow and develop more musically and dance wise. It was a great show for a intermediate school. I enjoyed it a lot and can’t wait to see what they do next.”

Brandon Dilluvio, another alumni of I.S.61 who attended all three days of both schools shows and is a freshman at Curtis said “ I helped one of the eighth graders with the tech, crew, and sound. I made sure the kids that were doing it actually knew what they were doing, this was a good thing because when I worked on the Curtis show the crew mostly painted and handed out programs and raffle tickets.”

“It was great seeing some of the kids that I used to attend school with last year. A lot of the middle school students that were performing were students that are going to attend Curtis next year. I’m very excited to see what these students will have to offer in ours future productions at Curtis,” said Skivon Hardy

The Curtis players  also attended the IS 61 cast party to exchange bits of their production with each other. The party culminated with both casts performing  Grease Lightening on the stage.

Skye Pickering a Curtis student who attended the I.S. 61 cast party but did not attend the show said, “I enjoyed seeing both the differences and similarities of the intermediate school and high school versions of Grease Lightning and even though I did not attend I.S.61 appreciated the warm welcome they gave me. I’ve always been curious of what this school was like and I feel that it has made quite a wonderful impression.”

Livan Hernandez, a Curtis student who transferred from Puerto Rico this year and is a senior said, “it was great time! Some of the kids said that they consider me a role model. It was a great inspiration for me to continue my pursuit on acting.”

Chris Guaman, a senior who did not attend the play at I.S.61 or I.S. 61 for middle school, but did attend the I.S. 61 cast party also recounts experience there.  “ It was nice seeing young kids getting inspired by high school students. I hope they achieve their dreams in what career that they desire. I wish good luck to them all,” said Guaman.

David Garvin a seventh grader at IS 61 thought that the best part of the cast party was when he shared the stage with the high schoolers for Grease Lightening and they taught each other their versions of the song.