James and the Giant Peach at YPT

Watch out for the falling peach! James and the Giant Peach rolls into Young People’s Theatre (YPT) from November 24th to January 4th. This performance was inspired by Roald Dahl’s original story. This version has a few plot twists. This performance is focused on building family values, such as kindness, caring, empathy and respect. This play was brought to stage by Allen MacInnis because all of this year’s plays are about fairness.

Plot of the Play

The play is about a boy named James who lost his parents. James is forced to live with his horrible aunts, Aunt Spiker and Sponge. One day, James meets a mysterious man that helps him to make crystals that will brighten his life up. James drops the crystals near a peach tree. Marvelous and peculiar things start happening.

Characters

- James, the main character. James is shy and always has ideas. James is energetic and active.

- Aunt Spiker, James’s horrible aunt. Aunt Spiker is tall and skinny with a tall hairdo.

- Aunt Sponge, James’s other horrible aunt. Aunt Sponge is fat and lazy.

-The Mysterious old man, whom James meets in his garden, gives James a Bag of magical crocodile tongues that will give him a happy life. The mysterious old man only appears once in the story.

- The Ladybug, one of the creatures James found in the magical peach. The ladybug is very lady-like and has nine spots on her back. The ladybug is nice to James all the time.

- The Spider, one of the creatures in the peach. The spider is energetic and nice to James.

- The Grasshopper, one of the creatures in the peach. The grasshopper loves music and is very gentle with James.

- The Centipede, one of the creatures in the peach. The centipede doesn’t like James at first but realizes James could be his friend.

- The Earthworm, one of the creatures in the peach. The earthworm is very “cute” and doesn’t really talk to James at first but finds his way to being in James’ family.

Costumes

What would a play be without costumes!? The costumes used in this play looked splendid! As a journalist, I got to interview Milena Radeva, who makes props for YPT. Milena enjoys using different materials and exploring what different materials can be used for. Milena thinks helping out with the costumes can be stressful at times because she only has a short amount of time to make the costumes.

Lighting

The lighting made this play look amazing! The most important part of lighting in this play was the shadows. I interviewed the lighting designer, Jason Hand. Jason goes to rehearsals and decides the lighting. Jason loves to play make-believe with shadows. The most interesting shadow in the play to me was the scene of James’ mother and father’s accident. Their shadows looked realistic and clear.

Director

The director of James and the Giant Peach is Sue Miner. Sue thinks being the director of the play is fun but stressful at the same time. “It’s stressful because a lot of decisions are up to me,” said Sue. I think Sue did a wonderful job directing the play.

Alessendro Costatini-James

The main character of this play was James of course who is acted by Alessendro Costatini. “I’ve been acting for ten years so far,” said Alessendro. He really liked being on stage when he was little. Alessendro became inspired to act with a love of stage. Alessendro is trying to convey courage through his performance in this show as that is what he believes this play is about.

Dale Miller-Centipede

Dale Miller, who acted the centipede, told me, “The most difficult part for me is memorizing lines.” Dale was inspired to act by his love of stage and singing. Dale thinks this play is about family.

Jacob MacInnis-Earthworm

The earthworm, in my opinion, is the cutest character in the whole play!  “I did my first musical when I was 15,” said Jacob. Having a love for music inspired Jacob to act. Like Dale for Centipede, Jacob thinks that memorizing lines is the most difficult part. Jacob thinks this play is about discovering where you belong.

Audience-Jenny Weisz

I was pretty surprised to see Jenny, the actress I interviewed before who played the title character in the Annie musical at YPT last year. “I love to hear James singing,” said Jenny. Jenny thinks the play was all about being part of a family.

As the play ended, I felt sad because it was time to leave. I thought the show was amazing and fun. I hope to visit YPT again!!!!

by Emma Zhang (age 9)

Recently, Voice K had the opportunity to tell our longest serving mayor, Hazel McCallion, about how we adored her. Three journalists from Voice K each made an official speech to her in person!

The event is called “SALUTE TO HAZEL,” a party at the Mississauga Living Art Centre for the community to thank our retiring mayor.  I saw a stage and a GIGANTIC cake when I walked in.  One of the big halls was filled with crafts that had something to do with Hazel. There was also a big wall for people to leave their words to the mayor. I made a headband that said, “I ❤ HAZEL.”

When I met up with the Voice K group, my legs were shaking. When the host finally called “VOICE K MAGAZINE,” I walked carefully onto the stage. Once the microphone was handed to me, I started with a few, slow words. “Our mayor is an outstanding mayor,” I began very slowly, “I’ve seen her in many community events….” In no time, I was finished. I passed the microphone on for the next speech. I thought, ”Well that wasn’t so bad, was it?”

Here is Emma’s Speech for the Mayor:

Our mayor is an outstanding mayor. I’ve seen her in many community events. Once I saw her at a StreetFest during my birthday. I also saw her at a Christmas parade. I never miss the part where she comes in! I’ve seen her at the City Hall during the New Year when my choir sang there. Recently, I saw her at the Terry Fox Run. Our mayor is honorable. She takes part in lots of community events and makes a lot of effort. No matter whom our next mayor is, our Mississauga has already become strong. Hazel McCallion used a lot of determination and hard work for Mississauga to be the best place it can be. Hazel McCallion is our mayor that we will always remember.

By Voice K Summer Camp

Chinese culture arrived at Habourfront last weekend. The place was jam packed with Chinese art, craft, dance and outstanding food. 

“ It’s amazing to have 70 artists from China to perform at this festival”, said Rodrigo Fritz, Senior Artistic Associate and Project Coordinator at the Harbourfront Centre. The China Now event lasts three days starting with an opening showcase on Friday, July 11th, 2014. 


“The hardest part to organize was the opening showcase that involves 7 artist group. Coming up with the correct schedule and getting everybody together is the most challenging part," said Fritz. It took Habourfront over a year to organize the event. They started discussions with the Ministry of Culture in China and their major partner, Smithsonian Center for Folklife and Cultural Heritage in Washington about a year ago. Between different departments there were at least a hundred people involved.

“We are very fortunate to live in a multicultural society,” said Dr. Nelly Ng, the chair of Can 4 Culture, a not-for-profit organization that connects culture. "My goal is to by introducing this magnificent art, for people to understand one another better." 


China has a history of five thousand years. Some of the crafts, such as the clay figurine and kite making has a history of two thousand years. 


"Because we don't know much about China and its rich history, and we get fascinate about it, and we hope more people get to see it. I think through art, we are connected." said Dr. Ng. 


This is the first time Harbourfront Center hosting a festival solely focused on China.  be sure to check it out yourself!

 
By Dea Yu  & Emma Zhang (Age 9)



On Sunday, June 22th, 2014, a group of Voice K journalists headed out to Central Island for the Toronto International Dragon Boat Festival.  The drive was pretty long. When my family finally arrived at our destination, I wanted to jump out the car!


When my family got to the ferry dock, we had to wait in a long line for the ferry. My family rode on the top layer of the ferry. When I got there, I was amazed by the buzz if excitement in the crowd. There were so many people with paddles so I knew they must be paddlers competing in the race. There were lots of vendors with food and games, and the thumping of the dancers’ feet on the stage was amazingly loud.


I explored the island until I saw the Voice K group. We got split up in two teams. I interviewed a paddler named Tim Hudson who was competing for the P&G team. 


 “My dad and I used to always go rowing when I was your age and we did the same in Boy scouts too.” Hudson said. He told me that the important part about racing is that everyone has to be in sync. “You have to make sure you listen to the man in the back and everyone on the boat has to know his instructions.” 


I also learned that in a race like this, you want start paddling very hard at the start, slow down in the middle, and then pick up at the end. 


In order to prepare for a dragon boat race, you need a lot of different training. One of the most important ones is to train how to row. You can pull your paddle to your sides and work on your strokes. You also need lots of warm-ups and muscle trainings because paddling requires a lot of back exercises, shoulder exercises, and cardio exercises. 


“How do you feel when you finished the race?” I asked. 


”Relieved,” Tim said. “Because you get really exhausted in the race and it’s good to finish. And I feel even better when I win.” 


Then I asked to see his hand and there were so many calluses on them!


Then I interviewed one of the organizers of the even ─ Kevin Lo. His favorite part of the race is seeing all the teamwork effort. Lo told me that this was his fourth year being an organizer. “I first heard about this festival when I was a kid,” Lo told me when I asked him about his first experience.


After playing for several hours, it was time to head back home. I still remember the day I saw dragons on the river, and excited to see next year’s race.