By Javier Wright 5 th Grade, Children s Community School On Thursday, January 30, 2013 my school went to the Palace Theater to see the play The Jungle Book. When we arrived to see the play, we were greeted by our guide, Karen Streeter. We saw many old pictures of how the theater looked when it first opened, years later when it became dilapidated, and finally, when it was renovated. When the theater first opened it was called The Poli Theater after its owner. We walked over to the orchestra pit, which is located in front of the stage. All the actors and anyone involved in a play performed at the theater sign the wall to show they were there. The theater paints a picture associated with that play and its title, and then, everyone signs it. Finally, it was time to see the play. After taking our seats, the actors came on stage and explained some of the sign language they would use and what the scenery meant. There was a lot of audience participation, which was a lot of fun. After the play, we stayed behind and interviewed the actors. We were told to stay in school and study hard. There is a lot of preparation and memorizing a lot of lines before you step on the stage. It was a great day at the Palace Theater.
By Natilai Weaver 5 th Grade, Children s Community School The students from kindergarten to grade 5 at Children s Community School boarded school buses to see the performance of. The entire student body had been reading the book and was looking forward to seeing it acted on stage. In addition to seeing the play, the fifth grade had the added treat of having a tour of the historical theater and a chance to interview the actors after the performance. Our guide, Karen Streeter, gave us a lot of information about the history and the architecture of the building. My favorite part was to learn about how the theater had been in very bad shape before it was renovated. It is amazing how beautiful it is today. After the tour, we sat in box seats and enjoyed the performance. There was just a little scenery but it was easy to imagine where everything was taking place. The three actors did a great job playing all of the animals and Mowgli. The last part of the day was when we were able to interview the actors and stage manager. My question to the actors was Would you rather perform on stage or on T.V.? They all agreed on stage because they liked the performing in front of a live audience. It was a great experience to tour, watch a play, and interview the actors at the beautiful Palace Theater.
By Kayla Surajnoth- 5 th Grade, Children s Community School On Wednesday January 30th, grade 5 from Children s Community School went to the Palace Theater and had a tremendous time! Our tour guide, Karen, explained everything perfectly. She showed us a lot of things we didn't even know existed! Also the actors did a wonderful job. Caitlyn sang so beautifully. I liked the way Nat changed his body movements for each character! I also liked that each of the three had to do multiple parts. Adam played Kaa, Mowgli, and Akela. Jake played Motherwolf, Bagheera, and Kite, and Nat played Baloo, Father Wolf, and Shere Khan. Also, after the performance, we interviewed the actors, Caitlyn and the stage manager, Becca. We all asked them a couple of questions and got answers, but two of the questions and answers were my favorite. My classmate Leandro asked, How do you learn all of those lines? Caitlyn answered my favorite question. She said, I record all of my lines on a computer then listen to them. My other favorite question was asked by my classmate, Najma. She said, How do you feel while performing on stage? My second favorite answer was answered by Jake. He said, I m nervous at first but the more I practice the more comfortable I get. Just keep going when you make a mistake, just keep focused. That was grade five s trip to the Palace Theater and I will be sure to come back soon! By Najma Braddock-5 th Grade, Children s Community School Fifth grade from Children s Community School went to the Palace Theater on Wednesday, January 30, 2013 to see the play based on Rudyard Kipling s children s book,. But, before the play started, we were treated to a tour of the theater. It is beautiful and grand. We saw gold leaf on the ceilings that resembles real gold. Also, the walls are faux marble meaning fake, however, the stairs are real marble. There were only four men who painted the lobby to make it look like marble. It looks very realistic! After our tour we saw play. When the show ended, we had the pleasure of interviewing the actors. Their names were Nat, Jake, and Adam. My question for them was How did you feel while performing on stage? Jake s answer was the more practice you have the more comfortable you become. If you make a mistake just keep going and always keep focused. We really had a great time and it will always be remembered.
Aniyah Thompson-5 th Grade, Children s Community School When I walked through the doors to watch the play, I was so amazed. It is a beautiful theater. It was like passion to the eyes. I couldn t believe it. The stage was huge, the curtain was red with a dash of yellow, and the seats were red velvet with black hands. The stage is so nicely built. When you walk through the entrance all you see are huge crystal chandeliers. A secret about the PALACE THEATER is it has a river flowing under it. How cool is that? The ceiling is covered in gold leaf. Unbelievable, right? I can t truly explain it, it is that amazing. The play we went to see just wowed me. You have to go there yourself. My class and I went backstage. I can t tell you how beautiful it is. You must have a press pass to get to see backstage. When I grow up I would like to act on that stage. Another secret about the PALACE THEATER is that they can expand the stage even bigger than it is for certain plays and acts. I really hope to go there again. I hope when you go you will like it because I did. It was a great experience that I am grateful to have been a part of it. Najla Braddock-5 th Grade, Children s Community School On Wednesday January 30, 2013, our class went to the Palace Theater to see. When we got there a volunteer named Karen gave us a tour of the Palace Theater before we saw the show. But we couldn t go anywhere unless we had a press pass. So, Karen gave each of us a press pass. When we got it we started the tour. The Palace Theater is a wonderful place. Karen brought us to the lobby. She let us touch the stairs because she wanted us to feel the marble, and it was real. After that we went down to see the dressing rooms. While we were walking, she showed us a wall that was painted. It showed all the plays they did. The actors who performed in the play signed their signature on them. After we looked at all of them she brought us to the dressing rooms. It was BEAUTIFUL! The one we saw was the principal dressing room. These are for the main characters. Other dressing rooms are for the extras. These are called chorus dressing rooms. Then, we went to the theater. She told us to stomp our feet down the aisle until we thought we found the orchestra pit. Once we found it we raised our hands. Then she told us about the orchestra pit and things about the theater. After that, she asked us if we wanted to sit in box seats or the house. We said the box, sat down, and enjoyed the play! When the play was over we interviewed the characters. Their names were Jack, Nat, and Adam. I asked the actors When did want to start acting? I first acted when I was 5 years old, said Nat. He played Shere, Khan, and Baloo.
I accidentally got into drama class and started to enjoy acting, said Jake. He played Bagheera and Mother Wolf. I acted when I was younger, said Adam. Adam acted the parts of Kaa and Mowgli. The Palace Theater is an amazing place anyone would certainly enjoy. Destiny Daniels-5 th Grade, Children s Community School On January 30, 2013 the fifth grade class from Children s Community School went to the Palace Theater to see the play,. We had a tour of the theater before taking our seats to see the play. Our tour guide Karen, gave us press passes that we wore around our necks so we could walk anywhere in the theater. We could not have gone backstage without them. We were told that the marble stairs were made of real marble, but some of the walls were faux. That means it is fake and just painted to look like marble. Downstairs we saw the walls had paintings on them from all the plays that have performed there. The actors and stage crew all sign the wall. The fifth graders got to sit in the box seats to see the performance of. After the play was over, we stayed in our seats until the theater emptied out, and we were able to interview the actors. My question to the actors was about how they change backstage. We were told that someone is behind the curtain to help if they needed it. It was a fun and interesting day at the beautiful Palace Theater.
By Aliyah Fox-5 th Grade, Children s Community School On Wednesday, the fifth grade class from Children s Community School went to the Palace Theater to interview the cast that performed in the play,. But before they did, they were escorted around the theater by Karen, a volunteer from the Palace Theater. Karen showed us the portrait of Poli s Hotel which is now the Palace Theater. Karen told us that the chandeliers are about 100 years old. The theater s birthday was last week. There are cracks on the floor if you walk in the lobby. The cracks are there because there is a river under it. Years ago the river flowed under the entrance and through the door that is in the lobby. If you look up, you see a gold ceiling. It s called the Golden Leaf. In the lobby is something formed like a fountain. It was a fountain before, but now it is used to showcase things for special events. Before the show started, we got to see the dressing rooms. On the walls are the paintings of the play like Shrek or Beauty and the Beast. We sat in the box seats. The person who played Mowgli, Kaa, and Akela was Adam, Jake played Bagheera and Mother Wolf, and Nat played Shere, Khan, and Baloo. The actors were tremendous. They really were active and really brought out the characters from. After that, we interviewed the actors and they actually like Baloo. We got autographs and we took a few pictures before we left. Great Job Adam, Jake, Nathaniel, and Karen. By Leandro Fernandes-5 th Grade, Children s Community School On January 30 th, the 5th grade from Children s Community School had a blast. We had a tour of the Palace Theater and we saw actors dressing rooms. Also, we stood on the orchestra and listened for an echo in the floor. At the back stage, we saw all the paintings the other actors drew on the walls and signed. Then we went to see the Jungle Book on stage and we sat in box seats. Then, we interviewed the actors, the background singers and the manager. We asked them questions like, how did you learn all of your lines? And one of the actors named Nat said he first writes his lines over and over, and then he speaks his lines out loud. Then, he finds someone to say them with. Then, Caitlyn said she records the lines on a computer with other actors and then she listens to the recording.
Monique Mckenzie-5 th Grade, Children s Community School On January 30, 2013, my class and I went to the Palace Theater to see. My class had a tour of the Palace Theater and we also got to interview the actors. I learned so many things I didn t know about the Palace Theater. It turned 91 years old last week and that there is a river under the Palace Theater. I didn t know that the marble on the wall was just paint. I also didn t know that the seam in the wall is painted. After the tour we saw the play,. I thought there would have been more actors, but there were only three of them. I liked how they changed their voices and body movements to let the audience know that they became a different character. I also liked the way they included the audience in their performance by teaching the audience the signs for the different animals and words. I thought the play was great. If I had to rate their performance, I would give five stars. After the play, we interviewed the actors. Here are some things they said. Nat said he was five years old when he decided to start acting. Adam said he was very young when he started performing. Caitlyn was eight when she started acting classes and dancing. Becca, the stage manager, did her first play when she was only three years old. Jake said when he was on stage, he was nervous in his first performance. The more you practice the more comfortable you become. Just keep going even when you make a mistake. Keep focused, Jake said. I feel that all the actors have inspired me to be an actor. By Alexia Anderson-5 th Grade, Children s Community School On January 30, 2013, Children s Community School went to the Palace Theater to see The Jungle Book. All of the classes were reading at the same time so everyone was very excited to see it on stage. The fifth graders were treated to a tour of the historical Palace Theater in downtown Waterbury. We saw and learned many interesting facts. My favorite thing I learned is that there is a river that flows under the theater and the cracks in the marble floor remind us of that. The play was a lot of fun to watch. Three actors from Shakesperience performed all the major characters. It was amazing to see them change in front of our eyes. They took on the personality of the animals they were playing. After the play, the fifth graders interviewed the actors. Everyone came prepared with one question. My question was Did you read the book before you did the play?
Everyone answered that they did read it when they were younger and everyone was excited to be a part of this stage production. They were especially excited to perform at The Palace Theater. By William-5 th Grade, Children s Community School When I went to the Palace Theater, I was dazzled by the architecture. I loved the marble steps there. I got to see the Jungle Book play and sat in the box seats. After the wonderful performance, I got to interview the whole cast, which was fun. I also got to go backstage and on the walls, they have the plays that they did with the cast signatures on it. Then, I learned about the guy who made the Palace Theater and got to see what it first looked like. I loved my day at the Palace Theater. By Dior- 5 th Grade, Children s Community School Our field trip to the Palace Theater was awesome. I had a great time. But let s talk about the tour. It was so cool. The chandeliers were so big and the faux walls looked so real. The gold leaf was so fragile and thin. I love the part when we went back stage and saw the paintings of all the shows that came. Then, when we tried to see the orchestra pit we stomped and heard the echoes of the orchestra pit and then we found our seats! We got to sit in the boxes. We got good seats. Off to the play. The play was the best play I had seen, with all the costumes. It was planned perfectly. After the play we got to interview the actors and singer, Jake, Adam, Nat and the stage manager. My question was, what inspired you to become an actor? Adam said because his dad used to read to him at night with a voice of a character.