Parkland High School - Par Key Yearbook (Orefield, PA)

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Leo and Key Club presidents Kris Breininger and Anne Emmcrth speak with senior Jim Fortney who, along with Eric Riglcr, DJ'd the marathon. Key Club members, juniors Jani Mendola and Nina Mclandandri seem to have the floor to themselves while the other groups take their breaks. As the marathon draws to the end. weary dancers Amy Nigro, Betsy Saxton, Kris Thirion and Stacey Ulrich continue to stay on their feet ancing the night away Dance Marathon

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Marathon breaks tradition with less time, participants Maybe Bowie’s “Ch-Ch-Changes” would have been a better theme for the Dance Marathon. “Let’s Go Crazy’’ by Prince was the theme, but the distinction between this marathon and ones in the past was a focus on breaking tradition. First the Key and Leo Clubs followed Mr. Donald Fleming’s suggestion to shorten the event from 25 hours to 12 hours. Another major difference the clubs initiated was shifting the event from March to Nov. 16-17. Marathon participants also would be able to see how others benefit from their achievements. The Parkland Alliance For Youth will use the money to set up media centers in the elementary schools to educate young children about drug and alcohol abuse. local radio station. Key and Leo Clubs chose senior DJ’s Jim Fortney and Eric Rigler to keep the students rocking for the 12 hours. Both clubs’ members actively involved themselves with the planning of the event. The decorating committee decorated the gym with purple, black, and white balloons and a purple brick wall which participants signed. Presidents of Key and Leo Clubs, Anne Emmerth and Kris Breininger, wore the traditional tuxedos contributed by The Top Hat Unfortunately, the changes were not enough to atttact students. In fact, a disappointing 45 students showed up to dance out of the the 100 who had signed up. Mr. John Ritter commented that the students’ lack of interest will most likely lead to the end of the dance marathon for at least a couple of years. Instead of hiring DJ’s from a 20 Student Life

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John V'incent, Kris Krumanockcr Maureen Devlin, and other cast members petition for Richard Cory. Lew Kiefer (Richard Cory) gratefully accepts flowers from Maureen Devlin (chorus member). Abstract sets, modern play introduces skills to actors eJeciincj, On November 30, the cast of “Who Killed Richard Cory” hit the stage with their experimental production. The play began with the cast reciting the poem of “Richard Cory,” by Edward A. Robinson. Then each character had a scene that talked about Richard Cory and how he had it all but was still driven towards suicide. There were 37 scenes and each one was taken from a line of the poem. A new technique was used in this production. The actors had to work in abstract settings and costumes. The scenery was made up of boxes. Senior Ron Buse, who was part of the audience, said to the cast, “I guess you didn’t have to work hard on that set.” But really the boxes were hard to make up. The cast seemed to work well with the abstract setting. Sophomore Mike Parkinson (Joe, the paper boy) felt, “Working with those settings was quite a challenge because we had to act everything out.” The people involved in the production worked hard to make the show come to life. The cast practiced from 6:30 to 9:00 every day for two months after school. Senior Lew Kiefer (Richard Cory) thought, “Practices were long, but we were able to pay close attention to details.” There wasn’t a very large turnout. The students in the play thought that Parkland just wasn’t ready for a serious production like Richard Cory; comedies usually bring in a better audience. But the audience that did attend the play thought it was worth the trip. “Overall the production went very well. The cast really respected Mrs. Carthew’s directing ability,” said sophomore cast member Trina Reiner. 22 Student Life