Come From Away at DPAC Tells the True Story of the Stranding of 7000 Airline Passengers in Gander, Newfoundland, After 9/11

Come From Away at DPAC Tells the True Story of the Stranding of 7000 Airline Passengers in Gander, Newfoundland, After 9/11

I was a little wary about seeing the Durham Performing Arts Center's presentation of Come from Away, playing through Sunday, Jan. 22nd, as part of WRAL Greatest Hits of Broadway at DPAC. This 2013 Sheridan College Canadian Music Theatre Project, 2017 Broadway, and 2019 West End musical, written by Irene Sankoff and David Hein, is based on the emergency landing of 38 airplanes (with 7,000 total passengers) in the Newfoundland town of Gander (population: 11,880) after the September 11, 2001 attacks.

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FrazierTales Collection Volume 1 by Mark and Chris Frazier is Vivid and Easy-to-read
Children, Relationships, Children's Books Melissa Rooney Children, Relationships, Children's Books Melissa Rooney

FrazierTales Collection Volume 1 by Mark and Chris Frazier is Vivid and Easy-to-read

Today I review Frazier Tales Collection Volume 1, written by Mark and illustrated by Chris Frazier. It’s a hardcover volume of three illustrated children’s stories, so it’s a good value for money. And there are a lot of illustrations, all of them quite detailed and of the quality garnered by Ren and Stimpy or Rocko’s Modern Life, both Nickelodeon series…

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Jump the Moon: A Children’s Picture Book Review

Jump the Moon: A Children’s Picture Book Review

This morning I had the pleasure of reading Kathy Simmers’ and Marjorie van Heerden’s children’s picture book, Jump the Moon, about the mystical bond that forms between “the girl with the long blond hair” and the misbehaving pony she is charged with for a summer. The book is based on a true story involving the author’s daughter. I rode horses throughout my adolescence (was president of the riding team at my college), so the subject of Jump the Moon immediately spoke to me.

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Playing Possum a No Win
Published, Children, Relationships, Community Melissa Rooney Published, Children, Relationships, Community Melissa Rooney

Playing Possum a No Win

Three weeks ago, my son spotted a tiny opossum outside our house. The next day, he found the opossum in our garage. An Internet search suggested it was about 13 weeks old – too young for weaning. We put the little guy in a newspaper-lined box with fruit, cat-food and water. Over the next few days, our neighbors and we had rounded up 5 littermates…

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Graveyard Surprise

Graveyard Surprise

By Melissa Rooney. For SCBWI Carolinas “Ignite the Spark” Zoom group (18 Oct 2002). Assigned Prompts: Write a children’s story, 250 words or less, using the following prompts: 1) take a location from childhood and strip everything normal about it (if usually crowded, make it barren, etc.); 2) the starting lines, “It’s okay, they’re not as scary as they look;”and 3) the image of a sign reading, “Beware, the Trees Talk.”

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Stephen Sondheim and James Lapine's Into the Woods Might Be Too Much of a Good Thing for Some Young Theatergoers
Published, Arts, Relationships, Community, Children Melissa Rooney Published, Arts, Relationships, Community, Children Melissa Rooney

Stephen Sondheim and James Lapine's Into the Woods Might Be Too Much of a Good Thing for Some Young Theatergoers

As the sun set and the odd bat or two flew across the clearing above the historic Forest Hills (outdoor amphi-) Theatre in Chapel Hill, NC, it was clear that director Melissa S. Craib Dombrowski and the folks at Stone Soup Theatre Co had chosen the perfect venue for their production of Into the Woods, Stephen Sondheim's 1987 Broadway and 1990 West End musical, with a book by James Lapine…

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Paperhand Puppet Intervention's 2022 Summer Show, The Meanwhile Clock and Other Impossible Dances, Is Like a Pilgrimage to a Corroboree

Paperhand Puppet Intervention's 2022 Summer Show, The Meanwhile Clock and Other Impossible Dances, Is Like a Pilgrimage to a Corroboree

Going to a Paperhand Puppet Intervention performance is like pilgrimaging to a Australian aboriginal corroboree, where magical ceremonies teach ancestral truths, pulling everyone present into the community. And it's all the more impactful when it occurs in a ruins-like amphitheater in a forest in the heat of a late-summer sunset…

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Florida Oceanographic Society’s Coastal Center: MUCH More than an Aquarium

Florida Oceanographic Society’s Coastal Center: MUCH More than an Aquarium

As promised via post-it note on the Florida Oceanographic Society's "Pledge" board, I am sharing my article about their Coastal Center in Stuart, Florida, where my family (12-50 years) spent an entire day and still didn't venture along the ~50-acres of Nature Trails in this barrier island ecosystem. If you’re visiting the east coast of Florida, you must put this stop on your list. And those who work for nonprofit organizations could learn a lot from the level of very visible volunteerism created by the leaders of the Florida Oceanographic Society. Building community for a common cause is the epitome of public outreach.

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Joshua Thompson and Symoné Spencer Win 2022 Triangle Rising Stars Acting Honors

Joshua Thompson and Symoné Spencer Win 2022 Triangle Rising Stars Acting Honors

When I was given the opportunity to review this year's in-person Triangle Rising Stars Showcase and Awards program on Wednesday, May 11th, at the Durham Performing Arts Center, I knew immediately that I had to go. American Idol Season 2 runner-up Clay Aiken hosted the event, which featured performances by 2021 TRS Best Actor Joshua Messmore and 2021 TRS Best Actress and 2021 Jimmy® Awards best-actress-award winner Elena Holder.

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DPAC's March 20th STEM-Based Wow in the World Pop-Up Party: Laboratory of Bad Ideas LIVE! Interactive Variety Show Was Entertaining and Educational
Arts, Education, Children, Published Melissa Rooney Arts, Education, Children, Published Melissa Rooney

DPAC's March 20th STEM-Based Wow in the World Pop-Up Party: Laboratory of Bad Ideas LIVE! Interactive Variety Show Was Entertaining and Educational

The Sunday, March 20th, performance of the Wow in the World Pop-Up Party: Laboratory of Bad Ideas at the Durham Performing Arts Center (DPAC) is the first children's-theater show that I've attended since I first heard the words "Covid Nineteen." From the well-dressed young families running down Blackwell Street and the lack of parking, it looked like it was going to be sold out…

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Grant Opportunities for Educators (April deadlines)

Grant Opportunities for Educators (April deadlines)

To make grant opportunities I know about available to more than just who I know, this article summarizes the educator grant opportunities I have successfully applied for. The word "grant" is intimidating, but often these grants are quite easy to apply for. Don't let the fear of bureaucracy stop you from at least skimming over what's required.

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All or None (Parents, Cut Yourselves Some Slack)

All or None (Parents, Cut Yourselves Some Slack)

This article was first published by the News and Observer in February, 2012. When people say, “It goes by so fast,” I usually respond, “If only it weren’t all or none.” If only we could stretch these early years to double their duration and half their intensity. It’s wonderful, but it isn’t easy. And we parents shouldn’t be so hard on ourselves.

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Give your kids the gift of practical STEM education while supporting a Community Public School

Give your kids the gift of practical STEM education while supporting a Community Public School

To help educate the students and school community about the “stormwater control measure” installed on the big playground at E.K. Powe Elementary School (in Durham, NC), I've created a picture book containing before, during, and after photographs with text explaining the reasons and mechanisms behind the changes. Best for grades 4-7, it educates readers of all ages about the importance of sustainable landscaping, collaboration, and grants.

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Regarding Durham's Capital Improvement Plans (2021)

Regarding Durham's Capital Improvement Plans (2021)

We must make more existing outdoor spaces and playgrounds -particularly those at public schools - environmentally sustainable in terms of stormwater management. Too many of them, particularly in underserved schools/communities are being flooded or washed away in ever increasing rain events, polluting our streams, rivers, and lakes, which effects low-income citizens far more than those who can afford to drink bottled water.

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Grounds Maintenance at Durham Schools? Call BETC!

Grounds Maintenance at Durham Schools? Call BETC!

This article addresses Durham Public Schools’ Bionomic Educational Training Centers or BETC program, which *pays* occupational course of study (OCS) students and teachers to install and maintain raingardens and other sustainable landscaping on school campuses and private properties: https://www.dcomanagingforresults.org/environmental-stewardship/bionomic-educational-training-center].

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