Hempfield townlively.com
FEBRUARY 19, 2025
SERVING THE LOCAL COMMUNITIES SINCE 1954
Hempfield High School to put on “Pippin”
Swishing to success: Hoop stars aim for states
BY GEORGE DEIBEL
BY CAT SHANNON
in life,” said Alyssa. “He goes through several different avenues to figure out what he is meant to do. At the end there is a plot twist I can’t give away, but it’s interesting how it works out.” Sophomore Ayla Vieland, who will portray Catherine, was a member of the ensemble last year and is happy to take on more responsibility. “You definitely have to come to rehearsal and be prepared,” said Ayla. “‘Fiddler’ is a bit of a more serious show whereas ‘Pippin’ has serious undertones, but it has fun visuals. There’s more energy. It’s more visually exciting with the bright colors and costumes.”
In early November, the Columbia-Middletown Elks 1074 lodge held its annual local Hoop Shoot foul shooting contest in the Park Elementary gymnasium in Columbia. Twenty-five shooters competed in six age groups: girls ages 8 and 9, 10 and 11 and 12 and 13, and boys ages 8 and 9, 10 and 11 and 12 and 13. The first-place winner in each age group was eligible to proceed to districts in McConnellsburg on Jan. 26, where two of the local winners won first place in their age groups. Carrigan Price took first place in for girls ages 8 and 9, with a score of 21 out of 25 baskets, and Ace Brumbach earned first place in for boys ages 12 and 13 with a score of 23 out of 25 - the highest score of the day. Carrigan and Ace will travel to the Penn Stater Hotel & Conference Center and Bellefonte Area High School to compete in the 2025 PA State Elks Hoop Shoot Championship on Saturday, March 1. Winners from the state competition will go on to regionals on Saturday, March 15, and then on to nationals on Saturday, April 26, in Chicago, where the six first-place winners in the national competition will have their names inscribed at the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame. For Carrigan, the daughter of Ryan and Michele Price of East Hempfield, participating in the Hoop Shoot provided an
See “Pippin” pg 2
See Hoops pg 5
Director Alejandro Ramos (at the piano) and Hempfield High School’s cast of “Pippin”
No tickets are required. Freshman Derek Harris will portray the titular character, Pippin, the heir to the Frankish throne who is in search of the secret to true happiness and fulfillment. “It’s kind of crazy,” said Derek, who has performed with Servant Stage Company and at Dutch Apple Dinner Theatre. “I didn’t really expect much going into the audition as a freshman and (my) first year doing a musical. The callback list came out and I thought, ‘OK, maybe there’s a chance.’ Even getting a callback was exciting because none of these people had heard me do
anything. Then the cast list came out and I found out I was Pippin, and I was blown away. This is the biggest thing I’ve had to do for a show, and it’s just really fun to be able to do it.” Senior Alyssa Pantoja, who is in the ensemble, noted that “Pippin” requires dedication. “It’s a very dance-heavy show, so it takes a lot of effort within practice and outside of practice to be able to remember the movements,” Alyssa said. This will mark the first time Hempfield has put on “Pippin.” “‘Pippin’ is basically about this guy who is the son of a king, and he is trying to find his purpose
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usic director Alejandro Ramos wanted to try something different for Hempfield High School’s musical this spring. “Pippin” perfectly fits the bill. “Last year we did ‘Fiddler on the Roof,’” Ramos said. “‘Fiddler on the Roof’ had a lot of expectations, a lot of traditions that had to be correct. There were certain religious elements. There were certain musical elements. There were certain set pieces and lighting that had to be something.” He noted the goal this year was to go in the opposite direction. “‘Pippin’ sort of answers that question of what can be the opposite of expectations,” he said. “‘Pippin’ is very free form. ‘Pippin’ is very go with the flow. ‘Pippin’ is very different. If you look at ‘Fiddler’ across 10 schools, it should be the same each time. If you look at ‘Pippin’ across 10 schools, there are going to be 10 different productions. As a director, that gives you the experimentation to play and create.” Hempfield’s production of “Pippin” will run from Friday, Feb. 28, to Sunday, March 2, in the high school auditorium, 200 Stanley Ave., Landisville. The curtain will be raised at 7 p.m. on Feb. 28 and Saturday, March 1. The show time for March 2 will be 2 p.m. There is reserve seating for these performances. Visit www.hempfieldsd.org/Page/117 to purchase tickets. Thursday, Feb. 27, will be Senior Citizen Preview Night, sponsored by the Hempfield Foundation. The 7 p.m. performance that day is only for Hempfield residents age 65 and over.
VOL XL • NO 46