Delaware Student to Compete in National 2017 Poetry Out Loud Finals

2017 Poetry Out Loud State Champion
Cecilia Ergueta.

Information in this post courtesy of a release from the Delaware Division of the Arts...
From a competitive field of 13 Delaware high school students, Cecilia Ergueta, a junior from Wilmington Friends School, earned the title of 2017 Poetry Out Loud Delaware State Champion at the state finals held in Smyrna, Del. on Feb. 28. The first runner-up was Shalyn Littlejohn from Hodgson Vo-Tech High School and the second runner-up was Sam McGarvey from Tall Oaks Classical High School.

Ergueta’s final recitation, The True-Blue American by Delmore Schwartz, earned her high marks with the judges. The full poem can be found on the Poetry Foundation’s website.

For her winning presentation, Ergueta will receive $200 and an all-expense-paid trip to Washington with a chaperone to compete at the national championship on April 25 & 26. Wilmington Friends School will receive a $500 stipend for the purchase of poetry materials. Shalyn Littlejohn, the first runner-up will receive $100, and Hodgson Vo-Tech High School will receive $200 for its school library.

The Poetry Out Loud state competition, sponsored by the Delaware Division of the Arts in partnership with the National Endowment for the Arts and the Poetry Foundation, is part of a national program that encourages high school students to learn about great poetry through memorization, performance, and competition. Delaware's statewide competitors included students Andrew Dingwall, Cecilia Ergueta, Jane Krukiel, Tania Laurent, Glynnis Leach, Carly Lepore, Shalyn Littlejohn, Sam McGarvey, Shannon Murray, Natalie Nwanekwu, Mollie Russell, Nick Thompson and Ryan Washington.

The Delaware Division of the Arts sponsors the Poetry Out Loud: National Recitation Contest program in Delaware schools and the state finals. Competition begins at the classroom level in the fall and culminates with the state finals each spring. Twenty schools and over 2,000 Delaware students participated in the Poetry Out Loud program in the current academic year. The Poetry Out Loud: National Recitation Contest competition is presented in partnership with the National Endowment for the Arts and the Poetry Foundation. 

Delaware Arts Info sends Cecilia all good wishes for a great performance in the national spotlight! GO DELAWARE!

20 Years of a Gravity-Defying, Gasp-Inducing Dance Phenomenon

Photo by Rob McDougal.

By Guest Blogger, Ken Grant
Ken Grant has worked in Delaware media, politics and marketing for 25 years. He and his Lovely Bride enjoy Wilmington's arts and culture scene as much as they can.

There's a reason more than 25 million people have come out to see Riverdance over the past two decades. This show brings dance, music, story and song together in a way that leaves the audience with goosebumps, smiles and questions about physics.

The show, featuring a troupe of more than 40 dancers and musicians, started in the mid-90s and centers on the rich tradition of Irish dance with a mix of Russian, Spanish and American tap.

Some statistics about Riverdance since it started in Dublin in 1995:

• 11,000 performances
• Performed in more than 467 venues, 46 countries, 6 continents
• Holds the Guinness World Record for “Longest Riverdance Line” with 1,693 participants
• 2,000 Irish dancers
• 20,000 Dance shoes
• 15,000 costumes
• 400,000 gallons of water consumed
• 75,000 gallons of Gatorade consumed
• 16,250 guitar, bass and fiddle strings replaced
• 60 marriages between company members
• 88 Riverdance babies born (so far)
• 17,500 hours of rehearsal on tour
• 6,000,000 pounds of dry ice used
• 70,000 pounds of chocolate consumed by the cast (for energy)

The production is set up as a seamless series of scenes, each with its own mini-storyline. There's expressions of joy, community, flirtation, fun and friendly competition throughout the show. Mostly though, there's a display of dancing ability that leads the audience to gasp in amazement.

One audience member noted that the way the dancers’ legs moved reminded them of marionettes, as if the joints were connecting the thigh and shin in a way that allows the feet to fly in any direction. The musicianship demonstrated in Riverdance deserves special recognition. The drums, Irish fiddle, saxophone, low whistle and uilleann pipes combine to create a soundscape that carries the audience from the Irish countryside to the city streets of America and back again.

This is a remarkable show that provides quality entertainment for everyone. You don’t want to miss your chance to catch this experience at The Playhouse this week.

See www.duponttheatre.com.

Quasi-History, Laughs Combine in a World Premiere at CTC

Paul McElwee as President Woodrow Wilson.
Photo by Joe del Tufo/Moonloop Photography.

By Guest Blogger, Mike Logothetis
Mike Logothetis grew up in North Wilmington, performing in school and local theater productions. He lives in Newark, but you can find him wherever the arts are good.

The White House has a total of 132 rooms with 412 doors, 147 windows, and a cadre of servants to keep things running smoothly. Only one of these rooms, two of its doors, two windows, and one servant are needed for After Birth of a Nation to lampoon what might have happened inside the executive mansion on a cold winter’s night over 100 years ago.

Local playwright David Robson has provided City Theater Company a quasi-historical farce loaded with sight gags, cross-dressing, snappy dialog and larger-than-life characters. This World Premiere production keeps the action at a fast pace and will have you laughing out loud at the zany antics. 

We are invited to The Green Room on February 18, 1915, where President Woodrow Wilson (Paul McElwee) has invited filmmaker D.W. Griffith (Jim Burns) to screen his new movie Birth of a Nation at the White House. Trusted adviser Colonel House (Dan Tucker) is trying to improve Wilson’s dovish, professorial image to the nation at a time when the Great War is raging in Europe and former President Teddy Roosevelt is the standard of manliness. Southerner Griffith and northerner House see power within their grasps and form a tentative alliance to use House’s policy ideas and Griffith’s film imagery to transform Wilson into a macho world leader – with them shaping his persona and reaping some rewards.

(L-R): Chris Banker as Clarence Fields, Jim Burns as
D.W. Griffith. Photo by Joe del Tufo/Moonloop Photography.

Meanwhile, First Daughter Margaret Wilson (Dylan Geringer) is a 29-year-old, tee-totaling spinster with dreams of becoming a famous singer; although her morality prohibits her from name-dropping to score coveted auditions.

All the characters are historical figures whose demeanors and true callings are humorously warped to create the premise of this show. Added to the mix are a lascivious southern preacher and his wife – Rev. Richard Gamble (George Tietze) and Cora Gamble (Kerry Kristine McElrone) – plus Russian Ambassador Eugeny Demidov (Jeff Hunsicker). Constantly filling champagne glasses is fictional black servant Clarence Fields (Chris Banker), who futilely acts as the gatekeeper of the room. Clarence also has a sinister agenda which plays out comically throughout the performance. These four characters are artistic constructs to help move the plot along and add more eccentricity to the story, which they do with aplomb.

The plot amusingly weaves from policy talk to social issues to religion to the arts and involves all but one of the characters – introducing the audience to who they are and what their intentions might be. The wacky first act sets up a screwball second where Demidov is inserted into the action to arrive at a satisfying conclusion.

According to Robson, “Margaret is the eye of the storm.” Margaret keeps things relatively sensible until she adds to the madness in the climactic scenes. To wit, Geringer’s exasperation repelling multiple suitors and interjecting herself into world politics are highlights of the show.

Another high point is McElrone as the minister’s wife, who longs to find a new religion – possibly one whose name and tenets she can properly pronounce – and satisfying physical love. Cora’s attempted seduction of Margaret built slowly to a quivering, hilarious climax that had me wishing she had an opportunity to make a second pass at the First Daughter.

Michael Gray directs the action to be quick, with characters entering and departing the stage at a frenetic pace. The set design and lighting by Vicki Neal and Richard A. Kendrick allow the actors to achieve a sense of space while being physically close to each other.

Robson harshly satirizes his subjects, but all of the actors are capable and provide ample character depth along with requisite humor. After Birth of a Nation is a funny look at what might have happened in 1915, but many of the jokes and comical references are topical. Robson has crafted his historical farce for today’s audiences, who should plan to see it.

After Birth of A Nation runs Thursday, Friday, and Saturday evenings at 8:00pm through February 18. Tickets cost $15-28 and the show lasts a jaunty 90 minutes with one 10-minute intermission. 

The Black Box at Opera Delaware Studios is located at 4 South Poplar Street in Wilmington. Alcoholic and non-alcoholic drinks plus snacks are available for purchase inside the theater.

See www.city-theater.org.