Youthful performing arts troupe addresses serious issues for LaMoille students
(Mendota Reporter)
August 28, 2013.
MWAH! Performing Arts Troupe members, left to right, Taylor Oechsel, 13, of Naperville; Chad Sype, 13, of Naperville; Jacob Metoyer, 17, of Itasca; and Alex Oechsel, 17, of Naperville, perform for students and faculty at LaMoille High School. Also attending the performance were seventh and eight graders and their teachers from Allen Middle School.
(Photo by Jeremy Reed of Impact Life Photograhy)
By Bonnie Morris, editor of the newspaper
LaMOILLE - Awareness and choices were a key focus at LaMoille High School on Aug. 26 during a special appearance by the youthful MWAH! (Messages Which Are Hopeful) Performing Arts Troupe. The 90-minute presentation kicked off the school year with a combination of real life drama, contemporary music and lots of audience interaction geared at LHS students, as well as Allen Middle School seventh and eighth graders.
A key objective of the event was to cause students and staff to think about life and death issues being presented by peers and then to relate the messages to their own lives and community. Some of the more serious true segments included a huffing-related crash that killed three north-central Illinois teenagers, the tragic consequences of heroin addiction involving Illinois youth, a bullying-related suicide of an eastern Illinois 10-year-old year, and the abusive hazing of students in a couple of suburban high schools.
The MWAH! troupe ranges in age from 12 to 19 and its members live in eight cities and towns throughout the western suburbs of Chicago as well as Rockford. Their performances convey tough and true stories about current issues affecting today’s teenagers.
In an a cappella version of the song "Born This Way," a freshman troupe member shared how he is coping with an imprisoned dad and drug-addicted mom. Using the song 'Two Houses,' another freshman shared the challenges of an eighth grade troupe member, who is dealing with a recent divorce settlement involving her parents.
On a lighter note, through song and pantomime, a little boy discovers that despite his repeated striking out when he swings at the ball, he truly is the greatest! Meanwhile, through singing the 'National Anthem' during the NBA finals earlier this year, an 11-year-old Mexican-American discovers how to deal with verbal put downs and racial slurs.
Also during the program, six LaMoille High School teenagers were recognized through song and commentary for their heroic school and community accomplishments. In a rousing finale, a number of local students joined MWAH! troupe members in a choreographed hip hop dance finale, having rehearsed together Monday morning.
MWAH! is a not-for-profit troupe affiliated with Kids Do Count, Inc. and the Chicago Area Project, a grass-roots service and advocacy program based in downtown Chicago and part of an Illinois-wide community services network targeting at-risk youth and their families.
The performing arts troupe evolved from a uniquely choreographed, championship caliber break dance team created by Ray Moffitt in 1983 as a healthy alternative to street gangs. Moffitt, then a police social worker in Maywood, was chosen to help develop and implement a prototype that became a national model for urban youth crime intervention and prevention.
After nine years of using a variety of innovative strategies, Moffitt discovered that the performing arts was an effective tool in changing the lives of hard-core street gang members. His original group, the Explosonic Rockers, was an outgrowth of an earlier program he created – Explorer Post #75 of the Boy Scouts of America. To become a Rocker, active gang members had to disavow their gang affiliation.
One of the first Rockers to discard his gangster ties was Steve Brewster, the troupe’s first choreographer and current youth sports director for the YMCA in Odessa, Texas. Utilizing performing arts, fine arts and a variety of organized athletic programs, Brewster continued the tradition of the Explosonic Rockers in Texas. In 1993, when the Rockers morphed into the MWAH! Troupe, he also designed the troupe’s new logo.
Among other alumni of the Explosonic Rockers and MWAH! are actors, song writers, professional dancers, and music producers in such cities as Los Angeles, New York, Las Vegas, Minneapolis-St. Paul and Chicago.
Further information about the MWAH! Performing Arts Troupe is available at www.mwah.net.