An opera professional, Yvette Lewis, in two weeks at Wyngate Elementary taught over 600 kids pieces from the Mikado, Aida, La Boheme and more, including original, instantly-accessible pieces The Gingerbread Man and Three Little Bears for the kindergarten and 1st grade. Kit and Gab were singing all week.
What more, the Friday night performance was presented in a crowded, hot gym of the Middle School. But the girls did SO well; they are good audience members. My greatest joy was found in Gabby's friends who approached to gather her to them on the floor. This lasted for awhile until the only glitch of the night when Mrs. Leister had to point out that Gab was playing on the off-limits stage.
My favorite moment was hanging with the little girls in Gabby's class for a minute, a picture of "we're more alike than different." Gabby was standing with her finger in her mouth, wiggling her loose front tooth. If you were being critical, (or super sensitive, as I am in these moments) she looked rather . . . dumb. The girls were just standing there considering her. Then one said, "Is Gabby's tooth wiggly?" The next thing you know, they all had their fingers in their mouths, prying their faces open showing so proudly which dents in their pumpkin heads were coming in, or wiggling out. These days, I find so many kind surprises.
. . .or was my favorite moment Kit's amazing ability to hop up there on the risers and give us a real, polished show.
As for Gab, she stood on the risers, remembered a few words and motions, and bowed at the end. Water over rocks . . . after all, it was just one week, two days of instruction.
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