Journey East 2016 departs for China
Follow the journey on the Journey East website and on Facebook.
TOWNSHEND >> On March 22, Leland and Gray Union High School students enrolled in the Journey East Program will depart for a month of performance and cultural study in China. After having been accepted into the Journey East Program at Leland and Gray in February of 2015, and starting the program in January 2016, students have been participating in a semester-long academic experience. They have been learning Chinese language, culture and history, as well as creating a unique production to be performed across China.
The production, “Dare to Dream,” is directed by the long-time artistic director Jennie Connor. The musical director, a new addition to the program, is Leland and Gray music teacher Riley Goodemote. The students, under the direction of Connor and Goodemote, have been creating a show that can be enjoyed by audiences both in China and in the United States. The cultural and linguistic divide is bridged by a largely non-verbal show that uses movement and music to captivate the audience. This show will be performed in primary schools, secondary schools, colleges and universities in various places across China, including Guiyang and Kaili of Guizhou Province, Chongqing, Qufu (Confucius’ birthplace in Shandong Province), Hohhot, Inner Mongolia and areas around these cities.
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The variety of places that will be visited on this trip gives students a diverse and in-depth look at China and its culture. Students will see important cultural sites in each area they visit, as well as visiting schools and interacting with Chinese students. The Journey East students will stay with host families in Guizhou Province, giving them first-hand experience of life in China. In Hohhot, they will rehearse and collaborate with students from the Arts College of Inner Mongolia University. This collaboration will result in a culminating performance in front of an audience of 1,500 students and teachers at the Arts College.
An information session for students interested in participating in the 2016 Asian Studies Academy and month-long performance tour of China will be held in the music room at Leland and Gray from 6:30 to 8:00 P.M. on Monday, January 26. A second session, for those unable to attend on the 26th, will be held on January 29 in the school library at 6:30. Come meet the teachers and view excerpts from “Finding Your Place,” the student-produced documentary on the program 
After a month-long performance tour of China Journey East will present its home show in the Leland and Gray gymnasium on Friday, May 2 at 7:30 P.M. In the vaudevillian tradition, “Monkey Business” is filled with comic skits, music, dance and mime and is suitable for all ages.