Stranded British students treated to 'Carousel' at South Side High School

On the night before they were finally scheduled to fly home to Essex, England, 29 stranded drama students and their three teachers were treated to “Carousel” at South Side High School.

The students, who had traveled to New York City during a school break, ended up having to wait out the volcanic ash cloud that wreaked havoc on travel throughout Europe. After taking in the sights of New York and several Broadway shows, they were set to leave as planned on April 16, but their flight was canceled. Their five-day visit then turned into an unplanned two-week stay as the high schoolers and their chaperones, out of money and missing school, camped out at the Uniondale Marriott, waiting for the next available flight home.

Learning of their plight, South Side theater teacher and “Carousel” director Pamela Seiderman invited them to see the musical free of charge on Thursday evening. But there was one hitch: how to get them from Uniondale to Rockville Centre, and back.

After a flurry of phone calls and ruling out several options that included parents driving them and a school-provided bus, Seiderman said Fred Stein of All Island Taxi came to the rescue, offering them free round trip transportation between the hotel and South Side High School.

Seiderman said that when the cast (some of whom were part of a group of 40 from South Side High School who recently visited England) learned they would be hosting the special European visitors, they were quite excited and got busy planning a warm welcome that included a sign greeting them, and cookies. She said the visitors were impressed with the show and really enjoyed it. Immediately after the performance, the cast, still in costume, came into the auditorium to meet, mingle and chat with the visitors.

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