By ANGELA MARSHALL
Making the cut this year was a struggle that had everyone, including music director Michael Abresch, holding their breath. Prior to the chorus's audition, he was told by his Garden contacts that "competition was fiercer than ever." This year, approximately 100 choruses tried out for the four open positions. After the field was narrowed to six, the Rockville Centre 30 needed to give a flawless performance. The tiniest mistake could take them out of the running.
Then the music started and their voices soared. Relief. They had made the cut.
The chorus put on the first of its 18 performances last weekend, and it was like the first time all over again for Mr. Abresch. "I had tears in my eyes," he said. "You never forget that first night."
Although the students are on stage for less than 10 minutes, parents call it an "opportunity of a lifetime."
"It's just a wonderful experience," said Deborah Sharot, whose daughter Melanie is wearing her wings for the third year. Melanie was one of the lucky ones, short enough to stay with the production for her entire middle-school career. For many performers, the growth spurts so prevalent in this age group make then unable to remain under the Garden's 5-foot height maximum for chorus members.
Danielle Cotter, who was so little last year, the production crew had to make her special wings, is eager to make it a three-peat herself. "She absolutely adores it," her mother, Janice, said. "This is a part of their education they'll never forget."
Getting an education and playing the Garden has become a battle of organization for these young performers. Because they must leave for the city during school hours for some performances, the children learn to think of their bus and dressing room as homework centers. But, parents say, it all works out thanks to the flexibility of teachers and the care of the music department. "They're just great," Ms. Cotter said of Mr. Abresch and choral teacher John Pineiro.
This year's chorus has become quite the family affair with four groups of siblings among the crew. Both of Jane Mackey's sons made the cut. Chris, who is in the seventh grade, participated last year and returned this year with brother Tom, a sixth grader.
"It's truly a unique experience," Ms. Mackey said. She hopes the opportunity will be available when her daughter makes it to the middle school in a few years, but is concentrating on enjoying the current run.
As for Tom, opening night was a little scary but, he said, "It turned out to be really fun and easy."
When asked what the best part was for him, Tom said it was working with "Mr. P" because he's so "nice".
Before each performance, the 30 students and their chaperones gather at the middle school to begin an odyssey that lasts from four to six hours. Curiously, they arrive at the Garden after the production has begun and wait for almost 45 minutes, doing homework, changing into costumes and warming up before they take the stage.
First, they pop out of windows singing "????," and then they return for another refrain in the finale.
Ms. Sharot said the whole experience has made her daughter want to be a Broadway actress. But, she said it has also made her lose all the illusions of fame and glamour. "Now she knows it's a job."
A job is just how these students have to see the performances, Mr. Abresch said. A crowd of 5,000 paying people fill the auditorium each show, and there is always the pressure that the producers are taking a risk using so many children. The musical director feels this is one reason Rockville Centre is asked back every year. "It's more than singing," he said. "It's an entire package, including how our children behave themselves."
When they walk into the Garden, Mr. Pineiro said, "They are there to do business. I ask them to do anything and they are right on top of it."
Performance dates
The middle-school chorus's remaining performances are: 2 P.M. Saturday, Dec. 2; 2 P.M. Sunday, Dec. 3; 11 A.M. Wednesday, Dec. 6; 7:30 P.M. Thursday, Dec. 7; 8 P.M. Saturday, Dec. 9; 2 P.M. Wednesday, Dec. 13; 11 A.M. Friday, Dec. 15; 11 A.M. Saturday, Dec. 16; 2 P.M. Wednesday, Dec. 20; 11 A.M. Friday, Dec. 22; 2 P.M. Saturday, Dec. 23; 1 P.M. Sunday, Dec. 24; 1 P.M. Wednesday, Dec. 27; 2 P.M. Friday, Dec. 29, and 2 P.M. Sunday, Dec. 31.
