by Luna Sandoval
The pandemic took away a lot of things from people all over the world. For Ouray School, many yearly events were canceled without any known reschedule dates. What many thought would just be weeks until the reschedule turned into two years. After careful consideration, and many precautions in place, Ouray School performances are back! Masks were a requirement to watch the performances.
The Abrams Performing Arts Center (APAC), was filled with people from the community who were there to support the performing students. There were many new faces within the audience and staff there eager to get the performances going.
To kick it off, the Wright Opera house hosted the Ouray High School string concert. The guitar and uke players came together to share the pieces they have been working on for the past couple of months. There were some moments that didn’t go the way they were expected to, “but that is just a part of it” said junior Ava Choate. The concert was on Monday, December 6.
The theater class performed their play You Will Thank Me on Thursday, December 9. During the afternoon, the class performed for the student body, and later in the night for anyone who was interested. There were many laughs and a lot of joy from watching the performance. The play was a great look into what theater class is about.
The elementary concert was full of festive music from many cultures. It is not an easy thing learning a song in a different language, especially at a young age. The students performing as well as the crowd shared many laughs. The concert was on Tuesday, December 14 and spectators filled every seat in the APAC. The cuteness from the stage was more than enough to keep the audience entertained and standing. Band teacher Rose Greisz has taught at Ouray School since fall of 2020, but this was her first time conducting a band performance.
The middle / high school concert on Thursday December 16 started with the middle school choir. Choir teacher Karissa Hoover led the students through several festive songs. The students played the uke and sang. Following the choir, the middle school band played two songs.
The high school band consisting of three freshmen played two songs as well as 8th grader Keaton Nelson and Rose herself joining in. Some of the band members were nervous. Freshman Jesus Sandoval had not been in a band performance since he was a 7th grader. “I felt like I was going to cry because of how nervous I was,” he said.
The performances left many excited for more. It is exciting to see students back on the stage, and the crowd coming together to enjoy performances.