1920s come alive at South High

Stop me if you have heard this one before: Charlie Chaplin, Babe Ruth and Amelia Earhart walk into a high school gymnasium. Actually, on second thought, there’s no punch line, just some of the characters featured at South High School’s 1920s extravaganza on Feb. 17.

Eighth grade students and faculty members dressed up as some of the decade’s most iconic figures to get into the 1920s spirit.

Zoe Michael was dressed as Alice Paul — a woman who played a crucial role in the establishment of the 19th Amendment, which prohibits any United States citizen from being denied the right to vote based on gender. “It’s fun to dress up as someone you’re not from the late times,” Michael said.

English teacher Rafaela Doherty said the 1920s extravaganza came about when fellow English teacher, Virginia Calderaro, said her father owned cars from the era and could bring them in.

Doherty said the event was a total team effort by the eighth-grade English and social studies teachers at South. “I was doing the Harlem Renaissance unit in my class in conjunction with what they were doing in social studies with the entertainers of the time period and such,” she said.

The event took between two and three weeks to coordinate, according to Doherty. “It was just a matter of figuring out the logistics,” she said, which included the faculty finalizing the room switching of the different classes so each student could get a taste of the different activities, and making sure there was a chaperone at each destination.

During the event, students participated in a parade, watched a jazz band performance, experienced vintage Model T cars, and attended a Gatsby-style party.

The destination that really piqued the students’ interest was a firsthand look at some Model T cars, as well as the technologically advanced Model A. Calderaro’s father, Valley Stream resident Bob Gunther, brought five of his cherished automobiles to South to show the students. His oldest car at the event dated back to 1924.