Fox Theatre performances by city school kids

Precious Taylor

Hundreds of St. Louis kid musicians will be performing at the famous Fox Theatre on Thursday, May 22. The occasion is the Saint Louis Public Schools' "Performing Arts Night."

Most musicians will be high school kids, with past experience performing to big crowds.

But, a third of the program will be by musicians from city elementary and middle schools. Many of those kids will be performing in such a large theater for the first time.

Ten-year-old Precious Taylor is in Ames Elementary School's choir. That choir will join with Shaw Elementary School's choir to fill one of the 17 performing slots that night. The combined choir will sing three different musical pieces.

Tamika Wilson

Precious said, "I think it's so exciting. I'm going to get a new dress and everything."

On the other hand, 14-year-old Tamika Wilson of Carr-Lane Middle School said she thought the night "might be a little scary." The 8th grader plays the flute in Carr-Lane's Concert Band.

Fourteen-year-old Jasmine Dobbs plays the clarinet in the Carr-Lane band. She admits she sometimes gets nervous before performing. But, she added, "As soon as I get on stage and start to play, my nervousness goes away."

The Performing Arts Night event will have a wide variety of performances, ranging from combined bands to solos. There's even a Shakespearean monologue by Hannah Longworth-Mills of Metro High School.

Jasmine Dobbs

Admission to Performing Arts Night is free. But, you'll need a ticket to get in.

Tickets can be obtained by calling (314) 345-4448 and leaving your name and a mailing address with ZIP code. Be sure to call early to make sure you get a seat.

Many of the elementary school kids who will perform got involved in music early.

Twelve-year-old Amanda Kunkleman is a 5th grader at Ames. She said she started with music at 3. "I asked my mother if I could be a singer. She said I could be anything I wanted as long as I practiced. So I started to practice then," Amanda said.

She's still singing and practicing because she wants to be a professional singer.

Amanda Kunkleman

Amanda said she doesn't usually get nervous. "But, I can't handle it if there are a lot of flash bulbs going off. I stand stiff like an ice cube," she said.

Eleven-year-old Brittney Jones is another Ames kid who wants to be a professional singer. But, she admits that when she goes to college she might get a second degree "in case it doesn't work out as a singer."

Another Ames choir member is 10-year-old John Swapshire. The 4th grader said he wants to be a professional singer. Asked about the type of music he likes, he said, "Slow music you can dance to."

Tamika Wilson of Carr-Lane isn't planning on a music career. She said, "I've always dreamed of being a doctor." She added that music has been "something extra."

Brittney Jones

Eighth-graders Joshua McKinney and Jarrell Little want to stay in music. But neither is planning to be a performer. They both want to go on to be music producers.

Fourteen-year-old Joshua plays percussion instruments in the Carr-Lane band. He performed last year at the Fox. He said the experience of playing before a nearly-full-house was "great." But, he said it got "pretty hot" in the theater by the time the concert was over.

He said his favorite class at Carr-Lane is mass media. That's where he gets the chance to practice as a music producer. Joshua said he wants to go to a Los Angeles college to study music direction.

Thirteen-year-old Jarrell is in the Carr-Lane choir, where he is the choir's lead baritone.

John Swapshire

Jarrell has had a variety of musical experience already. He plays the piano, organ and drums at both his home church, Fountain Temple, and at Antioch Baptist Church.

He's also in demand elsewhere. He said, "People ask me to play a lot."

Jasmine Dobbs at Carr-Lane doesn't see herself as a professional musician. Although she said she might be interested in being a dancer or a fashion model. But, she also said she's thinking about computer science or nursing.

Twelve-year-old Natasha McDaniel and 13-year-old Ashley Mitchell are both in the Carr-Lane choir. In fact, the two girls are very close friends and do lots of things together.

Joshua McKinney

They both like the mass media offerings at Carr-Lane because they like photography.

Ashley added, "I want to be a song writer also." Natasha wants to be a "punk rock" singer who writes her own songs.

But, for now all the kids are focused on May 22, when they perform before a packed house at the Fabulous Fox.

 

 

Jarrell Little

Natasha McDaniel (left) and
Ashley Mitchell