The HHS One Act cast will be performing the show “The Insanity of Mary Girard” this year,  after “Beggar’s Opera”, last year’s show, won the state competition.  

Mary, the lead role, will be portrayed by senior Jaymie Inouye, who has also acted in Elephant’s Graveyard, Thoroughly Modern Millie, Pieces, Oklahoma, Beggar’s Opera and Seussical here at HHS. Eleanor Alger, Ayam Ali, Julia Inouye, Olivia Kasidiaris, Josh Lucas, and Parker Rising will be playing supporting roles, The Furies.

The time is 1790. Mary Girard, a 16 year old peasant girl married Stephen Girard, the richest man in the country, to help him continue his line.

“…he was really cold to her and they found out they couldn’t have children, and it was actually his fault, because he was sterile, but he blamed her and was really rude to her and he had all these mistresses come to his house and kind of shunned her and so she tried to find comfort in the company of other men and she ends up getting pregnant,” said Inouye.

Stephen Girard discovers Mary’s pregnancy and, wanting nothing to do with her, throws her in an insane asylum despite her sanity.

“[In the asylum] she is haunted by the furies that are kind of figments of her imagination that are there to torment her and she is very confused and she doesn’t understand why this is all happening to her,” Inouye said. Inouye anticipates the difficulty of getting into character.

“It’s going to be a really difficult show. It’s really heavy and my character has to go through, she’s a very complicated character and she has lots of changes in how she feels and what’s her mentality, like is she going crazy or is she going to try and hold onto her sanity, so I’m excited for the challenge of kind of creating someone who is interesting and people can feel for,” said Inouye.

The Furies will represent what is going on in Mary Girard’s head. Junior Eleanor Alger will be playing the head Fury.

“I play one of The Furies. I’m the head Fury, and we are like the personification of the thoughts that are going on in Mary’s head, so as she like slowly spirals on into insanity, we represent that through like physical movement and we also kind of like narrate the story,” Alger said. She is excited for the challenge of the role.

“Because I’m not really playing a person, I’m playing like Mary’s thoughts, that is definitely I know going to be a little bit of a challenge, like getting into the characterization of that, but it is something I know I will grow into and will be really fun once we’re at a performance level,” Alger said. Actors are struggling with getting into character during these first few rehearsals.

“It’s hard often in the beginning of the rehearsal process to be able to completely invest yourself in a character, simply because you have the obstacle of the script in front of you and that you haven’t memorized your lines so usually that’s the hardest part for me and right now, especially since the show is really dialogue heavy, you know, people have to stop and kind of follow along with the lines rather than just be able to react, but once we have the lines and the script out of the way, usually it’s more smooth sailing,” Inouye said.

Alger is adjusting to the script as well.

“[The hardest part is] getting a feel for the script, I mean, this script especially. It’s not written in like modernized English, so we have to get used to like the style of the speech…,” Alger said.

Swartz provides insight on the director’s perspective as rehearsals begin. Stanley Swartz has been directing the one-act for 28 years now. Despite his experience, he too still deals with the challenges.

“One of the hardest things to do with rehearsals at the beginning is getting the kids to start to understand my vision and what they’re working towards, because they just have, at the very  beginning, they usually have not even read the play yet. They may not understand why I have cast them in the particular role that I’ve cast them at because they don’t know, you know, what I have in my head, so getting them on board and all going together towards the same goal and same vision is a big part of what I have to do,” Swartz said.

Inouye most enjoys the bond between the cast.

“I really like everyone, all of the community aspect of it. Everyone that does it is really dedicated to it and really tries to make the shows the best that they can be which is really important to me. I love that the city and the school district in general is really supportive of the arts so that we actually can put on productions that people have put a lot of effort into and I mean, Mr. Swartz is one of the most amazing directors in the world, so working with him is like a blessing,” Inouye said. Inouye loves the Musical and the One Act equally, but sees specific advantages in the One Act.

“The one act is nice, you get kind of more personal training because it’s a smaller cast and it’s usually more, I mean, it’s all acting. You really have to focus on acting and your ensemble work,” Inouye said. Both Alger and Inouye have fallen in love with performing.

“When I’m performing, it just really makes me feel, I’m at my happiest when I’m performing. It just, I definitely like feel like…most alive, like the most whole of a person when I’m doing that,” said Alger.

Inouye also feels a sense of fulfillment after finishing a production.

“It’s amazing. There’s nothing so satisfying as putting on a show and being and knowing that you put all you could into it…I come out of every show that I do growing in my skill level and ability like, that much more because I’ve learned new things and I’ve grown by the different aspects of the different shows so it’s almost like, once you finish, it’s a euphoric sort of feeling. It’s unlike any other feeling in the world…it’s one of the things I love to do most,” Inouye said.

The One Act will be performed free of charge to the public on Oct. 15, 2015.

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Six Newsstreak sports staff members pick their winners of district, college and NFL games. In this week’s edition of Pick Six- Harrisonburg vs. TA, Redskins vs. Falcons, JMU vs. Townshend and so much more.

This Side Up and Begging to Differ are two accomplished bands at HHS made up entirely of HHS students and one HHS alumni. These two bands are managed and mentored by Bob Adamek.

Jaymie Inouye is the co-lead vocalist and band leader for Begging to Differ.

“We have gotten a gig the past year and the year before, when I was in a different band, we’ve played at First Night, and Bob sets up gigs for us just spaced out throughout the year. We just did one[gig] about a month or two ago, for a celebration for back to school out at his house. They’re fun and he’ll [Bob Adamek] find a venue and invite anyone who wants to come out to listen,” said Inouye. 

Courtesy of Bob Adamek

Begging to Differ is made up of  co-lead vocalists, Jaymie Inouye and Laura Ruple, tenor saxophonist Rachel Rohrer, alto saxophonist Cecily Lawton, Keyboardist Seth Bontrager, Drummer JMU student and HHS alumni Dryden Labarge, Guitarist Noah Heie and they are currently in transition for a bass player.

“I don’t even remember, it took us forever to come up with a name and it was hard because there had been this running theme of high school bands at HHS where every name for each band could be found on a sign or a box; Help Wanted was one of the first bands here and previously I was in a band called Hours of Operation, so we didn’t know if we wanted to continue with that trend or not so we honestly had so many random names that we were choosing between, but I think we chose Begging to Differ because we liked the symmetry of it and the message of it and everyone felt comfortable with it so that’s what we ended up going with,” said Inouye.

Junior Keyboardist, Seth Bontrager is starting his first year with Begging to Differ. He took on the role of former Begging to Differ keyboardist, Chloe Richard, because she graduated and now attends JMU. 

“We practice at Bob Adameks house, he has a little shed outside with a bunch of band equipment and stuff,” said Bontrager, “We play old classic rock to punk rock [music] to more indie stuff,” said Bontrager.

The band This Side Up includes, base player, Ava Reynolds, keyboardist, Douglas Ritcher, alto saxophonist, Bianca Pierson, brass instrument players, Hollyn Slykhuis and Valerio Aleman, lead vocalist, Ellie Plass and drummer, Kieran McClay.

Senior Bianca Pierson is an original member of This Side Up and plays the alto saxophone.

“So the other high school bands that Bob [Adamek] helps each had like signs as their names, like Help Wanted and so we decided to go with a sign too, I guess one of us saw a box somewhere that said ‘this side up’, so that’s what we went with,” said Pierson.

Courtesy of Bob Adamek
This Side Up performs at SpringArts.

This Side Up is a two year old band and plays multiple gigs throughout the year including First Night, in downtown Harrisonburg.

“Ellie[Plass] and Ava[Reynolds] really wanted to start a band in high school so they asked some of their friends if they wanted to start[a band], and we thought it would be a cool idea to get a group outside and just play music that we enjoy,” said Pierson.

Senior Kieran McClay is also an original member of the band, This Side Up, and plays the drum set.

“We play everything, everything except for reggae, we play soul music, funk, r&b, rock n roll, etc.,” said McClay, “[being in a band] It’s pretty fun, but sometimes stressful, and we have all grown closer together.”

Immigration reform should include a path to citizenship for undocumented immigrants currently living in the United States. These mistreated illegal immigrants deserve this, If they are willing to pay taxes and are not felons, what makes them so different from a citizen whom was born in the United States, other than they weren’t born with a greater life? Immigrants shouldn’t be in the category as a criminal, nor should they be considered criminals if they came here illegally. They have their reasons for coming to the United States, they want a better future for themselves and their peers. No matter if we grant them citizenship or not people will still be crossing the border illegally, so why make it harder on ourselves and others? There will be a lawful way to go through this process that works, because currently does not. These people come from a different country because they were in a dangerous situation in their old country, yet they come here for freedom and protection, yet there still put in dangerous situations from people who take advantage of them. This is why we must grant them a path to citizenship to prevent other citizens from taking advantage of illegal immigrants.

They do jobs that no one else is willing to do, this is an important part of our socio economic system. Majority of our factory workers and blue collar workers are undocumented workers. We need and rely on our undocumented people and we do not even realize…without them who would do those tasks? nobody. The United States relies and needs them and these people should be granted this in return. If the United States doesn’t grant a path to citizenship to undocumented immigrants, then we are just allowing people to take advantage of these illegal immigrants. ”After a few months he stopped paying me, then he started threatening my life if i didn’t do what he said” This was quoted from a victim who was in this situation. These illegal immigrants are willing to go this far to even do blue collar jobs. It is the moral thing to do and grant these mistreated people a path to citizenship.

Historically we are the country that is open to immigrants, we are founded upon immigration. Nobody here is an original citizen, no matter how much we believe it…nobody is. The only group of people who should have the right to kick/deport people, are the Native Americans. Why do we have children and teenagers in grades school get up out of their seats to say the pledge of allegiance? It’s to let them know they are in the land of the free. How can we call our country the “land of the free”, when we deport innocent people who want freedom? We must allow a path of citizenship to these people, for the sake of the American title.

The Rockingham County fairgrounds Cross Country meet took place on October 7th, where the Streaks competed with several members beating their personal records.

Six Newsstreak sports staff members pick their winners of district, college and NFL games. In this week’s edition of Pick Six- Harrisonburg vs. Broadway and so much more.

Mr. Seth Shantz is one of the new teachers here at HHS. He teaches several topics including ecology, biology and earth science in the Blue Streak Academy (BSA). He also teaches engineering one and two for the STEM academy. He is originally from this area so he knows his way around the county. His favorite thing about HHS is the diversity.

 “I love the richness of diversity and culture here” Shantz said.”…there are so many opportunities here for students and faculty”.

Shantz grew up on a farm working side jobs for neighboring farms. He worked at a bike shop in college. He had an internship for an environmental consulting firm and shortly after came here to become a teacher. He said that his favorite job so far has been teaching here but the bike shop was a close second. His favorite class of the day is engineering because it is the most interesting to him

Shantz’ favorite thing about Harrisonburg is the land.

“It’s fascinating how geology affects the terrain” Shantz said. His favorite sports are a mix of cricket, rugby and most of all, cycling.

“When I lived in Christiansburg, there was a beautiful segment trail called the Huckleberry Trail and you’re removed from the rest of the traffic and it’s just incredibly peaceful. It’s about ten miles long and I would bike from my house to where I worked. It was just a peaceful way to start the day” Shantz said. His favorite singer is Don Williams and he likes to listen to traditional Celtic and Celtic rock.

One of the number one apps on my phone is Wattpad. If you love books (any kind of books) you will want to have Wattpad downloaded too. Wattpad isn’t just for readers, it’s for writers as well. It’s a great way to get your writing out there. Even Scott Westerfeld, author of the famous “Uglies” series, has an account.

Wattpad is a virtual community for readers and writers. Write anything, read anything. Genres range from Romance to Paranormal, from Nonfiction to Fanfiction. You can find any kind of book you want on Wattpad. You can also follow friends and writers to keep up with their latest works or see what they’re reading themselves. A smartphone isn’t required, there’s a website too.

Anyone can write a story on Wattpad, whether you’re an experienced, best-selling author, or you’ve never written a thing besides your history essays. You can update your book chapter to chapter, or if you’ve already got it finished, upload it all at once. No rush, a little suspense adds character. Also, publishers like to check out Wattpad for potential authors as well, so even if you are just writing for fun or you’re looking for your work to be noticed, Wattpad is for you. I’ve even seen stories from Wattpad made into movies.

Many of my top favorite books are from Wattpad, including “No Capes”, “My Life with the Walter Boys”, “Battle of the Captains”, “Puck You” and “Flawed Souls”. I am warning you, though, this app can be addicting. Once you get into a good story, you’re hooked. Trust me, there’s plenty on there. My parents used to get mad at me for being on my phone so much, but I explained to them, I’m reading! And really, I am! They don’t get mad anymore, I have a good book, everyone is happy.

Wattpad is has around 100,000,000 stories and they’re all free. This app won’t be one you’re deleting when the next software update comes out.  And if you need any suggestions, come find me. I have tons!

The junior varsity football team huddles during practice on Tuesday. They beat Waynesboro on Monday, improving their record to 3-3 after finishing just 2-8 last season.

The JV Football team defeated the Waynesboro Little Giants 24-14 Monday in a makeup game, grabbing their second consecutive win and making their season to 3-3.

After a first half in which the Streaks trailed 14-0 and had been intercepted twice, eighth grader Austin White took over at quarterback and the offense took off. Marcus Robinson followed blocks from fullback Casey Blankenship, linemen Chris Johnson and Sanjin Gorta to score two touchdowns and tie the game up early in the 4th quarter. With the game knotted at 14 and facing a fourth down from the Waynesboro 18 yard line, the Streaks gave eighth grader Mateo Peric a chance at the 35 yard field goal, and he converted, giving HHS a 17-14 advantage. Blane Murphy booted two kickoffs through the end zone for touchbacks.

Late in the 4th, Waynesboro drove out to near midfield trying to tie the game or take the lead. Little Giants quarterback Kazmaun Johnson under threw a pass intended for Christian Tolliver, and it was intercepted by freshman Gabe Poirot, who returned it for a touchdown making it 24-14 Blue Streaks. The defense held up late, and Harrisonburg pulled away with the win. 

Begging to Differ is one of the two HHS bands that Bob Adamek houses. They have been together since 2014, and consist of senior lead vocalists Jaymie Inouye and Laura Ruple, junior keyboardist Seth Bontrager, senior horn player Rachel Rohrer, junior horn player Cecily Lawton, senior guitarist Noah Heie and alumni drummer Dryden Labarge.

Teachers submitted photos of themselves in high school for Homecoming spirit week 2015. They were also encouraged to bring in their yearbooks and letterman jackets from their youth, and show them to their students.

The Oct. 17 Homecoming dance theme was black and white. Although that was the theme, many people were dressed in colors ranging from teal to gold. People were “whipping” and “wobbling” and dance ended with a chant for more. White and silver streamers hung from the ceiling, and there were black and white balloons scattering the floor. Around the corner people crowded around the cookies, chips and chocolate fountain.

Danae Delocier was a chaperone during homecoming.

“[I’ve chaperoned] the last two years, this is my third year,” Delocier said. Many chaperones helped out; from watching and managing the food table to collecting the tickets as kids walked in.

“I was signed up for it, I was ‘voluntold’,” Delocier said about why she decided to chaperone.

Sophia Alder-Stephens is a freshman who attends Freedom High School. She used to attend Thomas Harrison and visited her friends this weekend to watch the Homecoming Football game and attend Homecoming.

“My first reaction when I walked in, was that no one was dancing and there wasn’t a lot of people, but after the cupid shuffle it got better,” Alder-Stephens said. “My favorite part was just being there with friends.”

Courtesy of Valerie Kibler
Senior Abner Johnson is crowned king.

Alder-Stephens was disappointed that more of her peers couldn’t make it because they were at the Parade of Champions (POC) band competition at JMU.

Several band students left POC early to make it to Homecoming. Maritza Valencia, a sophomore in Marching Band, was one of those students.

“My favorite part was the dancing, of course,” Valencia said, “I didn’t like it ending at 11, it should’ve ended later. If I could have change anything, I would have made it later and put it in the gym and decorated it even more.”

After band students performed their show they were free to leave the competition early.

“I don’t regret leaving POC, it was worth it,” Valencia said.

Delocier talked about how homecoming has changed.

“[There is a] lot less dancing now, it’s more hanging around and talking, at least the dancing at my high school there was a lot more old school dancing like the electric slide and the Macarena, things like that,” Delocier said.

Jack O’Brien is a sophomore attending Homecoming for the second time this year.

“[My favorite part was] just hanging out with friends,” O’Brien said, “I plan on going again.”

As homecoming came to an end, students picked up a mason jar filled with candy.

Courtesy of Valerie Kibler
Students take favors at the end of the dance.

“This year was much better than last year, the enthusiasm, the vibe and everything. The DJ was great,” Valencia said.