“I loved playing “Poppy” in "Noises Off!" It was the midpoint of my career at The Academy, and it was just such a fun role to play. The show is slapstick comedy — and we’ve done a lot of comedy, but we hadn’t done something so orchestrated. It was fun to watch everyone else. The ensemble had to really be together in that show. And besides "She Kills Monsters", it was my most physically active show. It seemed like every night was such a good night.”
Congratulations to Ali Kane who is headed to Bard next year to study history and theatre!
“I’m excited for a new experience and all of the new classes I’m going to take. Bard offers some really interesting courses — like “History of Children’s Books” for an English requirement. And I’m looking forward to diving into my history classes. For a while, I didn’t know what I wanted to do, because I was accepted into a BFA training program, but ultimately I chose the liberal arts and Bard.
Ali is looking forward to joining Bard’s Theatre program as well.
“I’m excited to learn with a new theatre ensemble. Bard focuses more on contemporary and experimental work, maybe a little more than we do at The Academy, but we still study the classics. The ensemble there is small like here — which is awesome. It’s not a huge program.”
Ali’s mother Emily is appreciative of the academic education she received that put her on the path towards Bard, and credits her theatre training for giving her a leg up.
“Ali has really enjoyed the challenges associated with all aspects of theatre. Watching her tackle Shakespeare, Ionesco, and all manner of writers and roles and develop a level of confidence and maturity is incredible. Her academic growth has been equally impressive and we believe her theatre experiences have absolutely underpinned her intellectual and academic development.”
Good luck next year, Ali! Both Ali and Emily will miss the unique Academy community and education.
“I often tell prospective parents how incredibly unique this school is. I tell them how engaged and connected these students are and I point to the number of hours our daughter has spent in rehearsal and prep on nights and weekends rarely if ever complaining about the workload. Ali has never had to be reminded to do homework or learn her lines.”
“Sitting in the costume shop with my friends doing homework and preparing for a show. I will miss that. I will miss the atmosphere. It’s why I came here. It didn’t feel like a high school -- like any other high school.”