Author: Ivy Miller

Birds of a Feather Flock Together

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Birds of a Feather Flock Together

Haley Rudofker ‘18

The mother eagle fixes the nest as one of her eaglets watches in awe (photo courtesy of raptorresource.org).

Most people watch dramatic television shows like Riverdale and The Walking Dead, but Mrs. Casterline’s ornithology classes have taken a different approach to entertainment. During the course of the spring term, her two classes have continuously tuned into Iowa’s Decorah Eagle livestream to see what the parent bald eagles and their eaglets are up to. They started off in March, watching the parent eagles protecting their eggs and each other until they hatched in the beginning of April. All was calm until the father eagle disappeared after a snow storm in the middle of April, leaving his family to fend for themselves.

Nick Bauer ‘18 has become obsessed with watching the eaglets grow and learning about their species. “What I find interesting about the eagle project is how we can study the species without leaving the comfort of the classroom.” He checks on the livestream multiple times a week to see what has changed and if the father has returned, along with Danica Mits ‘18 and Jeremy Diaz ‘18. Like Nick, Jeremy has dedicated some time towards waiting for the father’s return. “It was sad to hear the father eagle disappeared. I checked everyday to see if he would come back. Danica, although concerned about the state of the father, has drifted her focus towards the rest of the family. “It was worrying because the mom now has to defend and feed herself and the chicks, so I’m pretty worried for the rest of the little family.”

The father will most likely not  return to his family, but luckily another male bald eagle has come into the picture to watch over the eaglets, so these ornithology students will probably be watching the livestream into the summer to see what happens on the next dramatic episode of the Decorah eagles.

Wyoming Seminary’s Spring Play

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Wyoming Seminary’s Spring Play

by Ziming Liu ’18

The Department of Performing Arts at Sem presents three major events every year. After Urinetown the Musical during the fall term and Winter Workshops during the winter, Sem players performed the annual spring play on the last weekend of April. This year’s play included two evening shows on Friday (4/27) and Saturday (4/28) with a matinee on Sunday (4/29). The Mousetrap by Agatha Christie, directed by Mrs. Ellen O’Brien Sherry, was selected to be put on the stage of Buckingham Performing Arts Center. The stage play first opened in London’s West End in 1952 and is currently still running, which makes it the longest continuously running play in the world. So far, the play has been performed for more than 27,000 times.

The newlyweds Giles (Portrayed by Levi Sunday-Lefkowitz ‘18)  and Mollie Ralston (Portrayed by Ellie Rosentel ‘18) open their guesthouse (Monkswell Manor) up for business for the first day while a disastrous snow storm hits on the English countryside on which they are located. They find themselves trapped with six distinctive guests, and one of them is a murderer. The classic murder mystery and comedy was brought alive by the cast of 8 Sem students.

Mrs. Sherry, in the process of deciding what this year’s play was going to be, said that, “At some point, every actor will try his or her hand at an Agatha Christie character. As director of this year’s spring show, I thought why not start them young and stage one of her murder mysteries?” She also gave the audience the first clue before the opening night, “Suspect everyone!”

A Celebration of Culture

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A Celebration of Culture

by Aishani Chauhan ’22

A key distinguishing factor that sets Wyoming Seminary apart from other schools is the cultural and ethnic diversity found within the Sem community.  Eighteen different countries and twenty different states are represented by international and day students. Each school year, students from around the world come together on Sem’s campus to have an enriched learning experience.  One way in which the Sem community celebrates and showcases the culture and talents of the international student body is through the annual International Assembly. This year’s assembly, held on April 16, 2018, did not fail to impress.

The flag bearing ceremony initiated the assembly; students elected by their peers to represent their country walked on the KCCA stage with their respective country’s flag, and said “hello” in the language native to their country.  However, the most anticipated pieces of the program were the performances and presentations delivered by groups of students from various countries such as Argentina, China, the Czech Republic, Taiwan, India, Puerto Rico, South Korea, Vietnam, and many more.

Some countries represented themselves through visual presentations.  Malen Visnuk ‘19 of Argentina shared a beautiful video about Argentina that displayed the contrasting natural landscapes from hot beaches and salt plains to snowy mountains and glaciers. Mina Exernova ‘20 of the Czech Republic shared a video of that displayed the splendor of gothic architecture found in the Czech Republic.  Students from China created their own video that entertained the school, and highlighted the different towns and cities of China where they are from, as well as their delicious cuisine.

Other countries represented themselves through vocal or dance performances.  Aishani Chauhan ‘20 and Ally Sayed ‘21 represented India through a Bollywood fusion dance to the Carnatic remix of Ed Sheeran’s “Shape of You”.  Their dance included precise and technical elements of classical Indian dance forms such as Bharatanatyam and Kathak, stylized with a more modern Bollywood flavor.  A group of talented students from Vietnam danced to multiple songs with passion and artistry. Quinn Nguyen, Alex Nguyen, Bach Nguyen, An Nguyen, Tommy Dang, Hieu Ngo, Kien Phan, and Huy Le represented Vietnam. They danced to “Baby I Told You”, “Anh Xin Lỗi Em Đi, and “Người Hãy Quên Em Đi.”

These were just a few of the wonderful performances seen on April 16th. Zahra Chittalia ‘21 says, “It was a perfect reminder about all of the cultures we have at Sem and how many opportunities we have to learn about them.” It was a reminder that emphasized the importance of an integral part of the Sem community: the brilliant diversity among our students.