The week of February 2, 2015 has been a big week for snow and the West Bloomfield High School (WBHS) Theatre Department, some of these events included:

S(NO)W WAY OF 2 SNOW DAYS

February 2nd was a historical event: the first snow day of the 2014-2015 school year! Most of metro-Detroit received a whopping 16 inches of snow, disabling most buses and cars from driving anywhere. Finding out at 4 pm on the 1st, WBHS students and staff members alike enjoyed their Super Bowl Sunday while snuggling up. When Monday night rolled around, Twitter blew up with “NO SCHOOL!!!” tweets from students from Walled Lake, Birmingham, FJA, Clarkston, Mercy, Farmington, and more. WBHS students waited aimlessly by the phone waiting for Dr. Hill or Mr. Watson’s tweet to set us free for another day of snowy fun. The students were expecting an answer at 9 pm, and when they got it, there was a simultaneous sigh throughout West Bloomfield. Bloomfield Hills and West Bloomfield were the only districts that were open for school in all of Oakland County.

FUNDRAISERS, FILMS, AND FORENSICS, OH MY!

The Theatre Department also had some huge events in the past week. On Wednesday, February 4, The WBHS Michigan Interscholastic Forensics Association (MIFA) put on a Dinner Theatre Fundraiser. In this fundraiser, the MIFA company performed their one-act comedy, “Strange Kindness” with both the understudy and main casts, served dinner and dessert and raffled off numerous prizes. It was a great event for all who attended.

On February 6, the Theatre Department held their 12th annual Orchard Lake Student Film Festival (Film Fest). That day, many schools attended day-time workshops and screenings. Some of these workshops included screenwriting, lighting for film, sound for video, and introduction to production. Additionally, screenings of the film entries were shown. After these screenings, the winners were announced. From WBHS, John Brenner’s “Tulpa” won first in suspense, Justin Dooley’s “Guyble” won third in comedy, and Max Vinogradov’s and Jackson Abohasira’s “Zuckerburg” won first in comedy and third overall. Though not every school won, it is safe to say that it was a beneficial experience for all who participated. That night, an encore screening of the winning films and all WBHS films was shown in the WBHS auditorium.

On February 7, the WBHS MIFA company competed at the MIFA Regionals competition held at WBHS. From 8:00 am to 7:00 pm, five schools built and spiked their set, performed their one-act comedy and tore down their set. Three judges chose the two schools that would proceed to the MIFA state competition: WBHS with “Strange Kindness” and Holland High School with “Sugar”. The State MIFA competition will be held on February 13 at Chelsea High School. Great job Lakers!

All of this past week, Freshman Class T-shirts, long-sleeve shirts, and crewnecks have been on sale, AAA Grammy Auditions occurred, and lunch-time science tutoring in Mrs. Danton room began.

Overall, this past week has been a great week for WBHS, despite having to be at school on February 3. This has been a wild week full of snow, sales, screenings, and science! Watch for the next weekly wrap-up and have a great week, Lakers!