The City That Never Sleeps

21 February 2014Karli S, Photos by Karli S

Over the February midterm, 34 Brentwood students travelled to New York City to delve deeper into the arts. Whether you were the lead in the musical or a member of the concert choir, or a percussionist in pops orchestra, this trip was open to you. We arrived in the city Thursday evening and were immediately given the opportunity to fend for ourselves for dinner and explore Times Square with a fresh pair of eyes. All of the lights in Times Square astounded many of us, and the hustle and bustle of the city was quite evident throughout the night. The following morning we boarded a bus and set out on a four hour Manhattan Sights Tour, with our lively tour guide displaying the highlights of the city. Afterwards, we were given the opportunity to either attend an acting or a dance master class located in one of the studios in the city. The comments made about the classes were nothing but positive, as everyone found them beneficial and fun. That evening, half of us attended Newsies and the other half attended Wicked, both Broadway musicals. For many of us, this was our first glimpse at a Broadway show and we were all, to say the least, blown completely away. We were able to fall asleep fairly quickly that night, as it had been a long, strenuous day of sightseeing and adventuring. The next day we had a variety of options to choose from, including going to check out the Statue of Liberty, walking Central Park, visiting the Museum of Modern Art, or exploring the Natural History Museum. The weather, although very chilly, was beautiful and sunny, which made this day even more enjoyable. For many, this afternoon was dedicated to shopping, as this was our largest chunk of free time throughout the entire trip. After walking several avenues and shopping until we dropped, we all headed out to see Cinderella on Broadway, the magical tale of the girl and the glass slipper. On Sunday, we visited Ground Zero, which was impactful for us all. The work that has been done there is quite breathtaking and one can’t help but feel moved while being there. We then visited Century 21, a department store with six floors – overwhelming to say the least. That afternoon we attended another Broadway musical, either Wicked or Newsies. Many went to Dave & Buster’s Diner for dinner and arcade games that night, which was loads of fun. Once Monday came around, we all could not believe that we were already near the end of our journey. It had gone by so quickly! We were given a tour of Radio City Music Hall that morning, which gave us all some history of the music industry in New York. That afternoon we attended a second master class and then enjoyed a group dinner at BB Kings as a way to end our trip. After our meal, we made our way to the Top of the Rock, where we took the elevator to the 64th floor and took in the view of the entire city at night. It was the most incredible view. Last minute shopping and adventuring was done that night and then it was off to bed for the last time in New York City. Travelling the next day went smoothly: our flights were on time, and all of our luggage arrived safely back onto the island. All in all, I got the sense that everyone had an amazing trip, maybe even one that will be remembered forever. Karli S, Hope ‘15

Where Students Choose To Be