Peoria Journal Star
September 14, 2010
MWAH! stages a heated confrontation in Henry
In drama and song, troupe demonstrates to teens good decision-making
By GARY L. SMITH state@pjstar.com
Peoria Journal Star
Posted Sep 14, 2010 @ 09:53 PM
HENRY -
In a scene that might have fit right into some political rallies, a teenager stormed out of her seat in the bleachers of the Henry-Senachwine High School gymnasium Monday after an assembly speaker mentioned the much-debated plans for a proposed Islamic center near the sight of Ground Zero in New York City.
"Obama is a Muslim!" she shouted. "All Muslims are terrorists!"
That prompted a male student to rush out and confront her in the middle of the gym floor, where local teachers intervened and seemingly had to struggle to prevent the two from a violent confrontation.
But their separation then set the stage for two other teenagers to sing the gentle John Lennon song "Imagine," about a world with "nothing to kill or die for, and no religion, too." The two antagonists hugged as the lyrics envisioned all people "living life in peace."
If that seemed like a hopeful outcome to a heated controversy, that suited the name of the troupe presenting a school assembly program that began with that sequence. The teens taking part in the confrontation were members of a Chicago-area troupe whose name means "messages which are hopeful."
About 400 Henry-Senachwine School District students in grades 6-12 attended - and some participated in - a 90-minute music, dance and drama presentation by the troupe called MWAH!. It consists of 15 teens from the Chicago area and northern Illinois who try to reach their peers with messages about "choices and the importance of making the right ones," said executive producer Ray Moffitt.
The essence of a performance is "real-life drama combined with contemporary music and lots of audience interaction," he said.
The troupe's appearance here came about after the recommendation of teachers who had seen them at an area community college, said grade school Principal Julie Nelson, who coordinated the visit. Funding for the issues-oriented performance was from the Character Counts program, she said.
"My teachers said it was wonderful, and we thought it would be very beneficial," Nelson said.
After the politically tinged opening, which was described in a script as an encounter between a bigot and an anti-bigot, the program mostly addressed interpersonal and social topics that are common in such settings. Skits and case histories included teen suicide, bullying, abusive relationships, and the dangers of drinking - and more recently, texting - while driving.
One example was an Oswego-area crash that claimed five teenage lives and sent a driver to prison for 15 years. The driver was described as a good person who made a bad decision.
"Bad decisions have consequences," said Chris Oechsel, a troupe member who also served as emcee for the program.
At the end of the assembly, about half of the local students showed their enthusiasm by spilling out of the bleachers to join the performers in impromptu dancing. Although about 35 had rehearsed earlier to be part of a finale, the spontaneous action had not been planned, Moffitt said.
"That was unusual," he said. "This crowd was outstanding. They really got into it."
Gary L. Smith can be reached at 686-3114 or state@pjstar.com.
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