Students and teachers at Charles Wright celebrated groundbreaking for the new Language and Performing Arts Center yesterday in a very big way, complete with dancing monsters and an excavator. 

The annual Founder’s Day assembly was held on the Upper School lawn.  The band Extreme Unction, starring Chaplain Mike Moffitt, Upper School science teacher Dan Wicklund, Upper School English and history teacher Sue Tjardes, and student Alex King ’09, warmed up the crowd.

Upper School Head Bill White took the opportunity to lodge an “official complaint” about conditions in the old West Wing.  “It’s so scary in there, I just know there are monsters hiding in the West Wing,” White told the crowd of more than 700.

No sooner had White issued this dire prediction, than a dozen “monsters” descended from the West Wing to lead the crowd in the dance from Thriller.

White promptly declared: “That’s it!  I can’t take it anymore!  I will not be the head of a school completely overcome by monsters!  We’ve got to knock down the West Wing and build a new building.”

The English, foreign language and performing arts faculty were quit to propose a theater, music rooms, and new classrooms.  “That’s great!” cried White.  “A new language and performing arts center is just what we need!”  With that, a banner was lowered over the portable that houses the drama department picturing the new building.

Attention quickly turned to the urgent problem of digging out the hillside to make room for the new building.  Lower School Head Diane Hunt proposed using a big spoon.  Middle School Head Brynn Starr brought a garden trowel.

Upper School receptionist Phyllis Kriese offered to dig the whole hillside out with her shovel, but White vetoed all these ideas.

Finally, White called on Headmaster Rob Camner who used his whistle to call out an excavator with a big golden bucket.  Facilities Manager Denny Dorum was at the helm and he took a big chuck of dirt out of the hillside while students and teachers cheered.

The Founder’s Day groundbreaking event concluded with a picnic lunch for the entire community prepared by Food Service Manager Sheila Clemans and her staff.

Demolition of the old West Wing, excavation of the hillside and construction of the new Language and Performing Arts Center will begin right after graduation in June.  All next year, faculty and students will share offices, classrooms and parking to make way for construction.  The new building will open in the fall of 2009.

More pictures and a video of the event will be available soon!  Stayed tuned….