There was plenty of action and drama included in Pocantico Hills School’s virtual holiday concerts for families. The performances were directed by music teachers Sheila DePaola and Michael Murray and filmed by professional videographers. The two concerts (elementary and middle school) were released a week apart in December.
In first- and second-graders’ performance of Teresa Jennings’ “This Old Gingerbread House,” Hansel and Gretel’s gingerbread home initially was falling apart because neighbors were eating it. They had a change of heart and helped rebuild it. Video of children singing “Yummy” and “Sorry” was interspersed with dialogue scenes they performed.
In “Cold Snap” by John Jacobson, third- and fourth-graders sang about a snowstorm trapping them in school. The performance included dialogue and songs they sang about different holiday traditions while they were waiting for the “cold snap” to end.
The middle school video featured the grades 5-6 chorus, grade 6 band, grades 7-8 band and the grades 7-8 chorus. The songs they performed included Jonathan Larson’s “Seasons of Love,” “Nutcracker Overture and Trepak” by Peter Tchaikovsky, Ray Parker’s “Ghostbusters” and the “Theme from Elf” by John Debney.
The final choral song featured a dancing student dressed up as Frosty the Snowman, with a finale of students throwing fake snowballs at the video camera.
