Princesses, sharks, a panther, a street rat and other famous Disney characters lined up inside Vivian Elementary School's gym, to tell a story through song and sign language.
"In a faraway land a young prince lived in a faraway castle ...," said sixth-grader Leilani Johnsen-Soto as she narrated the story of "Beauty and the Beast."
On May 10, these 24 students, all hearing abled, began to share the story of eight well-known children's musicals by signing and singing along to two classic tunes in their final rehearsal for their annual Movie Musical Night.
"Now, go on and get up," said the club's founder, Karen Chernoff at the start of rehearsal. "I want to do a few songs and the narration today."
And the stories began.
Over the course of the next hour, the students, aided by six staff interpreters and club alumni, signed the story of each movie plot --; "The Lion King," "Aladdin," "Mary Poppins," "Willy Wonka," "Finding Nemo," "The Jungle Book" and "The Wizard of Oz" --; showcasing their skills in public speaking and signing.
"Two more days guys, just two more days," Chernoff said encouragingly to her students as she gave them some final directions. "Let's do Hakuna Matata!"
"Yeah," they replied in excitement, jumping into position.
As the students --; ages kindergarten through sixth grade --; signed along to the lyrics, their excitement and energy for their final show grew.
"Let's do the Candy Man, do the Candy Man!" said Crimson McCarthy, a third-grade student in the club.
"How about Tale as Old as Time?" Chernoff replied.
Since January, the club --; held at the school for the past 15 years --; has been learning the words and practicing their signing skills along with the music, rehearsing twice a week for the show.
A center-based school, Vivian Elementary is known for their deaf and hard-of-hearing program. Currently, the school has 20 students who are hard-of-hearing or deaf, and six interpreters who aid them in their day to day education. Upon her arrival at the school, Chernoff decided she wanted to help increase communication among these students and their peers while making a more welcoming environment, so the sign club was born.
"We love it because we are able to teach our hearing students how to sign so they can communicate with their classmates and in the world," said Tori Mason, one of Vivian's sign language interpreters.
Normally a mix of deaf, hard-of-hearing and hearing abled students, the 18-week club practices the language through music and theatre, each encouraging students to communicate in alternative ways.
Along with the spring performance, the club performs a holiday show, "Signs of the Holidays," at local Barnes and Nobles bookstores and the Colorado Mills Mall.
And on May 12, after months of rehearsal, the students finally got their chance to show off their skills.
Dressed up in their costumes and with their various makeup designs painted on, the sharks from Finding Nemo, the princesses --; Jasmine, Belle and Nala, the panther Bagheera and a street rat named Aladdin took to the stage.
"And now I'm in a whole new world with you," they signed together.
from Lakewood Sentinel - Latest Stories http://lakewoodsentinel.comhttp://lakewoodsentinel.com/stories/Lakewood-school-puts-on-a-show-of-hands,213745?branding=15
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