MWAH! troupe appears at PORTA High School in Petersburg
By Jane Cutright, Editor
for The Menard County Review
April 12, 2013
The whole group of MWAH! and volunteer dancers at PORTA High School on April 12, 2013.
(photo by Jeremy Reed of Impact Life Productions)
PETERSBURG – The MWAH! Performing Arts Troupe gave a presentation at PORTA High School on Monday, April 8 under the sponsorship of the Menard Conty School and Community Task Force. Pictured are members of the troupe along with PORTA and Greenview students who participated in the final dance number of the presentation.
Awareness and choices were the key focus of a special presentation by the youthful MWAH! Performing Arts Troupe at PORTA High School in Petersburg on Monday morning, April 8 that was attended by both PORTA and Greenview high school and junior high students. Participating was Mary Kay Mace, now a resident of Petersburg and the mother of the youngest of the five students killed at Northern Illinois University five years ago, Ryanne Mace, who was 19. An advocate for improved enforcement of common sense gun control laws since her move with her husband from a Chicago suburb two years ago, she focused on the need for greater awareness of people who show signs of mental illness and other problems. Her comments followed troupe references not only to the NIU massacre, but also the Sandy Hook Elementary School massacre in Newtown, Connecticut in December; the record number of drug and gang-related homicides in Chicago, including the death of honor roll student Hadiya Pendleton nine weeks ago; and the upcoming trial in Florida related to the killing of Trayvon Martin, a black teenager. Participating with the troupe on current and proposed laws in Illinois related to teen driving, including the use of cell phones, was Illinois State Representative Rich Brauer, a graduate of PORTA High School. His comments followed the story of a single car crash near Peoria that killed three teenagers 17 months ago. Recognized as community heroes were several young people from the PORTA School District who have demonstrated leadership and courage in coping with some personal challenges. The 90-minute issues-related presentation for a combined high school-junior high audience also focused on the tragic consequences of bullying, with references to the suicides of a 10-year-old girl from Ridge Farm, south of Danville, and a 14-year-old gay boy from near Rochester who have demonstrated leadership and courage in coping with some personal challenges.
The 90-minute issues-related presentation for a combined high school-junior high audience also focused on the tragic consequences of bullying, with references to the suicides of a 10-year-old girl from Ridge Farm, south of Danville, and a 14-year-old gay boy from near Rochester, New York; and the issue of child abuse with references to reports of abuse at Penn State University, within the Boy Scouts of America, and at two Illinois high schools. In the context of an a cappella troupe version of the song "Born This Way," an eighth grade troupe member shared how he's coping with an imprisoned dad and a drug-addicted mom. Another focus, with a song "Two Houses" was a seventh grader's challenges in dealing with an on-going divorce and custody battle between her parents. A spin on a Bob Marley song "Three Little Birds"' focused on healthy choices in response to reports of an increased use of marijuana and heroin by Menard County teenagers. The essence of the 14-member MWAH! ensemble - an acronym for Messages Which Are Hopeful! - is real life drama combined with contemporary music and lots of audience interaction. A key objective on Monday was to cause the PORTA and Greenview audience to think about the true story messages that were presented and then to relate these messages to themselves, resulting in some meaningful life changes. In a rousing finale, about 25 PORTA and Greenview students joined MWAH! troupe members in a choreographed hip hop dance finale, having rehearsed together just prior to the presentation. Current members of the MWAH! troupe range in age from 12 to 19, and they live in nine cities and towns throughout the western suburbs of Chicago as well as in Rockford and in north-central Illinois. The not-for-profit troupe is affiliated with Kids Do Count, Inc. and the Chicago Area Project, a grass-roots service and advocacy agency based in downtown Chicago and part of an Illinois-wide community services network targeting at-risk youth and their families.
Sponsoring the troupe's appearance at PORTA High School was the Menard County School and Community Task Force, headed by Kay Daniel. The program was also presented at Athens High School on March 18.