Update on the Senior Show

by Shir Levenson, SSLI '26

Since the beginning of December, the senior class has been energetically rehearsing for their Hebrew production of the show “הלהקה” or “Halahakah.” The musical is a fun play for both the actors and directors as it is filled with lively dance numbers, emotional songs, and an interesting plot.

Lily Weissberg, among other seniors, is working on planning out the choreography for the dances. She explained, “So far, we’ve learned six out of the seven songs, so we’ve made pretty good progress. We’ve also learned the dances to all [of the songs] but two.”

Senior Galit Chesler is in the high school choir and drama club. She is a talented singer and actor and is going to be playing a main character named יפה, or Yafah. Based on her experience, Chesler explained, “I have a fairly large part singing and dancing. I have several solos, and I am front and center in most dances.”

The play, “הלהקה," means “The Band." The story is about a group in the Israeli Defense Forces who goes around and performs for other groups in the army. Some of their songs are spirited and upbeat, while others are slow and emotional.

Mr. Baumvoll, Ms. Ben-Yakar, and the seniors have been working hard to make sure the senior play will be amazing in April! (T. Ben-Yakar)

Weissberg feels that the rehearsals are an integral part of her experience as a senior. She shared, “I love preparing for the play. It’s probably become one of my favorite pastimes in school. It feels like a club or sport you would do after school. It takes up your time, but in a really fun way.”

Yoni Conn, a senior, feels, “play practice [is] better than traditional Hebrew class." He continued, "I learn more vocabulary and also improve on other skills such as dancing and memorization.”

Conn shared that the rehearsals have "brought the grade closer together." He continued, "We also laugh a lot during practice.” Chesler agreed: “It's a lot of fun getting to do a project like this with my whole class where we're all working together on a performance.”

The seniors have been working on all parts of the production so that it can be a great performance for all. Weissberg explained, "We’ve been practicing our lines and our singing roles."

The seniors are looking forward to putting on their Hebrew play. Come see it on April 18!

Shir Levenson is a writer for Paw Print Now and has been published on the site since December 2022. Shir is currently a sophomore at Schechter School of Long Island and can be reached at the following email address: slevenson26@schechterli.org