HST Update

Dear 25th Year HST Families,
Who knew that HST’s milestone year would also be an historic year? Your children will talk about living through Covid-19, the way we talk about living through 9/11. In the same way that people (particularly children) had to process the trauma of 9/11, so too, will today’s youth (and adults) be impacted by how quickly our world can change. Please remember that children take their cues from parents. *If you are able to exhibit calm and demonstrate your trust in God’s provision, you will greatly reduce the negative impact of these events.* *I know of no greater source of peace, than prayer. **It is my personal belief is that when life is hard we should pray, and when life is really hard, we should pray more.* This approach has gotten me through many challenging times in my life, and I’m certain it will get us through this challenge as well.
First – there are NO volunteer sessions this week. If you are getting a reminder from Sign-Up Genius – please ignore them. When we have a plan – we’ll adjust dates and people will be allowed to tell us if they can work the new dates. For now just know that no volunteer sessions are happening at my house until notified. *I will be reaching out to key individuals and working with them to keep production tasks moving forward. *
Second – the theater has officially closed for April.
– *I am going to wait until April 3rd to see if the other groups scheduled for May will release their theater dates* (some programs are deciding to just cancel spring events or move them to summer/fall). – If May dates open up – we’ll move our 4 troupe shows to May. – If May dates do not open up by April 3rd – we’ll move forward with plans to film the 4 troupe shows. – Filming sessions could start as early as April 13 but they may have to extend into early May. It will depend on what happens with the governor’s mandates. – JR & GB will film one scene at a time using a large space to create each scene (probably a 2 car garage). – The Hebeisen family in Boyd’s, MD have already offered their garage. Feel free to let me know of other suggestions for a large space for filming. – SR & SH will be filmed one scene at a time using different locations (many outside) to give a more realistic feel to these shows (if we end up filming them). – *HST has May 31st on hold * to show the videos of these productions. *It is possibly that we’ll have to find a later date for the viewing of films.* It just depends on when we can complete filming and start editing.
Third – *the adjusted dates for Showcase and Coffeehouse remain mostly the same at this poin*t. A*ny adjustments are highlighte*d.
– Showcase: – Dance classes: April 28 & 29, May 5 & 6, May 12 & 13. (These classes will also be used for assessments for 2020/2021 dance class eligibility.) – Choir classes: May 1, 8, 15. NOTE: A Cappella may have a Zoom class on a Friday in April (10:45am to Noon). We’ll send details as we figure them out. – Acting classes: May 1, 8, 15 (10am to Noon) – Bring parent provided costume items on May 1.Theater rehearsals: May 18, 19, Move Wed. 5/20 to Thursday May 21 – Performances: May 22 & 23. – Coffeehouse – Theatricals: May 1, 8, 15 – Noon to 2pm (Choir students will be allowed to quickly eat lunch in Theatricals room & then join class when done). – Load in & rehearsal: May 29: 6pm to 10pm for Tech, 6pm to 8pm for Honor Society, 7 to 10pm Performers
Finally, I want to remind everyone that God can bring good out of all things for those who love Him. This doesn’t mean that suffering and loss are removed. It means that we open ourselves up to learn and grow from painful experiences. We will all be changed because of living through Covid 19. The question is whether or not the change will make us more fearful and paranoid or whether it will make us more trusting and compassionate. With God’s help it will be the latter. On that note, I will be sending out an email for a service project that HST can participate in to support others. Putting the focus on caring for others is always is a great way to get past negative emotions. However, it is important to first allow people to process those emotions. It doesn’t do any good to bury our hurt, anger, disappointment, fear, frustration, sadness, etc. We want to allow people to feel their feelings, talk about them, and process them, so they can eventually move past them. We hope that in the end, we can focus on the blessings we still have, recognize that things could be worse, and channel our energies into helping others. That is the goal, but it takes longer for some people to get there than others. That’s ok. We are all wired differently. Let’s just support and encourage each other as we each process through the impact of Covid 19.
Blessings, Marilyn