SHARING ARTS CLUB: VOLUNTEERS, STUDENTS JOIN FOR 'GREASE' AT RIDGEWOOD HIGH

The Sharing the Arts Club at Ridgewood High School performed "Grease" on stage at the Little Theater on Nov. 21. The production was a result of a partnership between Ridgewood High School and Sharing the Arts, a performing arts non-profit for those with mild to moderate developmental delays.

Sharing the Arts was founded in 2005, when Karen Sheehy and Liz Matejka-Grossman were looking for a ballet class for their daughters who have special needs. When they could not find an appropriate class, they resolved that Matejka-Grossman would teach them and Karen would redirect.

"We wanted to create an environment that was a typical dance class, yet be able to have the students do everything at their own pace in a very forgiving environment," Sheehy said.

After more kids joined the class, Sheehy and Matejka-Grossman decided to bring the program to schools.

The musical theater program has high school student volunteers lead students with disabilities ranging in age from seven to teenagers, in performing shows. Four student leaders direct the production, which rehearses for about five weeks leading up to the dress rehearsal and staged performance.

"The students choose the show, get a copy of it, edit the script and cast the show," said Jennifer Landa, adviser for RHS's Sharing the Arts Club. "We always have multi-grade level leadership, so that by the time they're in charge, they've been in a leadership capacity for years."

The students picked "Grease" particularly for its music and costumes.

"We thought that the songs are upbeat and fun," said senior director Catherine Marra. "We felt that the kids would enjoy dressing up in leather jackets and poodle skirts."

The club aims to pick shows that are family-friendly and ensemble productions so that all of the students receive a fair amount of time on stage. Previous productions include "High School Musical", "The Little Mermaid" and "The Lion King."

The show is the culmination of a group effort within the school. Graphic arts students designed the performers' shirts and students in the theater program handled the lighting design.

Each performer is paired with one to two volunteers and the club has one of its largest memberships this year with about 40 volunteers.

"They've been really dedicated to making sure they're there every week and mentoring the students," said Landa. Many volunteers stay with the group for years and it's tradition for students to come home from college to see the current show.

Participating in Sharing the Arts encourages students to develop character skills.

"Promoting a culture of inclusiveness is really important," Landa said. "The club is about accepting people for who they are and getting to know individuals you might not get to know in your circle of friends and having the chance to provide a service to someone else."

"I love taking a step back and just watching the kids perform. Not only do I see tons of smiling faces, but I see certain kids who remember every single dance move perfectly and hear the kids belting out the songs and knowing every word," said Marra. "I know the joy that I get from performing in shows and I love seeing that same joy exude out of each kid in their unique way."

Hannah Cohan, a med student at Penn State who participated in Sharing the Arts when she was at RHS (Class of '12), said, "My friends and I always race home from school or work to reunite at STA's show. I return because watching the STA students and the high school volunteers perform together on stage is quite simply the greatest feeling in the world. Theater is collaborative in nature, and the high school students and STA students working together to share something that they've worked so hard on is the purest example of this. I feel very privileged to watch the product of their hard work. It's remarkable to see how STA students have grown up over the years. I have even seen some STA students who have started at RHS go on to serve as volunteers themselves."

For the younger students, "just getting to be the star is awesome," Landa said. "They're learning that they're so much more than just special needs kids, they're tremendous individuals. Getting to know them, you just really understand humans in a different way."

Sharing the Arts hosts dance classes on Saturday mornings at 1 Gym 4 All in Waldwick. The musical theater program is offered at the high schools in Ridgewood, Glen Rock and Glen Ridge. For more information, visit sharingthearts.org or contact info@sharingthearts.com.