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The Sennott sisters reveal their bond as twins

June 20th, 2011

Jenie Michael

Staff Writer

In the average relationship between siblings, brothers and sisters don’t typically get along. A survey revealed that the closer in age siblings are, the less close they are. For instance, those who are fourteen years apart get along much better than those who are four years apart. However, in the Sennott family, the siblings are just four hours apart, and they couldn’t be closer.

Rebecca and Cathryn Sennott are twins, sisters, and best friends. They go everywhere and do everything together. They “usually go everywhere together. [They] do all the same sports, and have all the same friends,” according to Cathryn.

While their relationship is every parent’s dream, there are occasional moments of disagreement.

“It’s just normal sister stuff. She’ll be wearing your clothes, she’ll take up all the bathroom time,” said Cathryn.

“But it’s like the pros always outweigh the cons, and it’s like…” added Rebecca.

“you always have a best friend,” the two explained in unison.

The two couldn’t be cuter together. They finish each others sentences, look at each other and burst out in laughter. It’s almost as though they can read each other’s minds.

“We always get the same questions from people like ‘do you guys have twin telepathy?’ All the time,” said Rebecca.

Twin telepathy does seem to be an idea they are familiar with.

“It’s like when you know someone so well, you just know what they’re thinking,” said Cathryn.

There’s nothing more touching then the love between sisters.

“We’re best friends. We never get bored because we’re always having a sleepover. We love each other,” said the girls, feeding off each other.

And in a contest, Rebecca and Cathryn would take home the gold, and mount it in the room they share as sisters, twins, and best friends.

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The Ability to Bounce Back

May 19th, 2011


Photo credit to ASA Photographic

By Jenie Michael

Staff Writer

Most people can’t wait to graduate and get out of this school and this town. On the other hand, Michael Towers, playwright, teacher, and head of Westford Academy’s theatre arts department, came back after his four years for more of Westford Academy.

After graduating in ’88, Towers attended St. Anselm College, in Manchester, NH, but shortly transferred to Boston College, where he had originally been wait-listed. Towers didn’t plan on coming back and teaching for WA, and after graduating college, moved to New York City to pursue his career in acting.

“A series of events brought me back to Massachusetts [from New York], and in that time I was looking for work in California. During that interim time [when I was in Massachusetts], I pretty much got an offer from the principal of WA at the time, which was Joe Licci,” said Towers.

Towers had originally denied the offer, on the basis that he was headed for a different career path. But after finding reason to stay in Massachusetts, he came back to Licci and asked, according to Towers, “What in the world were you talking about? Tell me this vision of yours for me.”

“He said, ‘You’re going to come to Westford Academy, and you’re going to teach in the English department, and you’re going to open the theater department’… so he carved a place for me here,” said Towers.

Once back at the school, Towers was in among many teachers who he once, not long before, had studied under. He says that it wasn’t awkward for him while it may very well have been for the older teachers. Though he did have a bit of trouble fitting in at first.

“[Dr. Spadano] was the first person [among my colleagues] to say ‘come and sit with me.’ Because before that time, all my teachers, everybody was Mr. and Mrs. and Dr. to me, and I was a little bit alone in terms of fitting in with my teachers as a teacher. And Dr. Spadano was the first to actually sit at a table alone with me. Nobody else joined us that day, I’ll never forget that,” said Towers.

And Dr. Spadano, who teaches math at WA, says he’ll never forget Mike Towers either. Spadano, an alumnus himself, says he didn’t know Towers all that well until he became a teacher because he wasn’t in any of his classes. When he did go and sit with Towers, it was out of politeness. A new teacher, a returning student, he was trying to make him feel at home. Evidently, he succeeded.



Towers in his office in the Bell Lobby of Westford Academy

For Towers, school was more than just an obligation when he attended WA as a student. He actually enjoyed coming to school, and rarely, if ever, tried to find a way out of class. He remarked that this was perhaps his romantic recollection, but he remembers wanting to be in school and wanting to learn.

“I loved being here. I didn’t miss school; I wasn’t sick because I wanted to be here. It was a warm, comfortable  place where people truly…cared about each other…it was very apparent to me that the faculty was a very pro-student focused group. … It was a very healthy place to be, so I consider myself lucky, which is why I’m back here now,” said Towers.

In the years Towers attended WA, he was extremely involved. He was a three-sport athlete, in the band, involved in theater, and his class’s president.

“He was new to the school, a transfer student. He was just a guy who wanted to make friends right away,” said Mark Lucey, who was Towers’s guidance counselor at WA, and still works here as Towers’s son’s, “So he went out for everything, he played instruments, he became a class officer, and he just wanted to make an impact on the school.”

And there is no doubt that he has made an impact. Now teaching at the same school, Towers is still very involved. His range isn’t quite so broad, but he takes on a plethora of roles within the school and on the faculty. He is a teacher of multiple courses and electives, the founder and head of Westford Academy’s Theater Arts department, and even spends his summer here running SSPA [Summer School for the Performing Arts] for six weeks.

Towers is constantly lecturing his students on the human condition, and one of the things he describes a healthy human to have is buoyancy, which he defines as the ability to bounce back. Coincidentally, he has done just that. He left WA, and bounced right back.

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Soul Surfer: A Cheap Inspiration

April 26th, 2011

By Jenie Michael

Staff Writer        

        Getting dressed, cooking, carrying books, driving; all of these are things which require arms, and two of them. Bethany Hamilton, professional surfer, is a real girl who lost her arm to a shark while surfing the waves of Tunnels Beach in Kauai, Hawaii, her hometown.

        The attack, on October 31, 2003, was only 2” away from being fatal. She survived, and following the shark attack, Hamilton continued her life nearly as normal, and even further pursued her surfing career.

        A year later, a book called Soul Surfer: A True Story of Faith, Family, and Fighting to Get Back on the Board relating Hamilton’s experiences was published. Seven years following the book’s publication, a movie was made describing the same events.

       Soul Surfer: The Inspiring True Story of Bethany Hamilton was rated PG, and appropriately so. It had a very definitive target audience. With Bible references, and a very simple plot, it’s suitable for families and teenyboppers, not so much for anyone into dramatic, action flicks with a lot going on at once. This was a more “sit back, relax, and enjoy” kind of film – though I do admit I jumped a bit at the moment of the shark attack. There’s not a lot going on throughout the film, and it did get a bit boring at times.

         The director tried hard to make the movie into a heart-wrenching tearjerker, but it just wasn’t all that. As amazing as the story is, the movie didn’t quite manage to bring sufficient tears to my eyes to be classified as a sob story.

        AnnaSophia Robb, the actress portraying Hamilton in the film, did decently acting, though it’s not my favorite of her roles. As a child actor, I often think of her in things like Because of Winn Dixie and A Bridge to Terrebithia. This role called for a more mature acting job, and Robb didn’t do as well as I feel her full potential would have allowed.

        The other actors, Dennis Quiad and Helen Hunt were good, as they have a great deal more experience in the business. Lorraine Nicholson was new to acting- apart from watching her father Jack Nicholson. Considering her inexperience, she did well with the role.

         It’s not chick-flick, nor action, nor sob story. Overall, Soul Surfer was a heartwarming family movie that’s good to heal you when you’re feeling cynical. It’s a story of recovery, and of how anything can happen, and you CAN do anything if you only set your heart to it.

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Will Clark: The Man Behind Marc Antony

April 7th, 2011

by Jenie Michael
Staff Writer

At the Massachusetts Drama Guild’s State Finals, it was announced that Westford Academy Theatre Art’s (WATA) production of J. Caes was the victor of the competition. Furthermore, awards were given to those outstanding performers in the show. Junior Will Clark, who played Marc Antony, was one of those recognized for his outstanding acting.

“I didn’t see it coming at all, especially as the rounds went on. At Finals, there’s a lot of competition. There were fourteen schools, and they each had actors like me. And so, it was hard. But you never know what can happen,” said Clark.

Not only was this role Clark’s first time performing in the competition show, but it was also his first time playing a major character. Previously, Clark was cast in shows such as Chicago,  A Midsummer Night’s Dream, and The Phantom of the Opera as a member of WATA, but never with as major a part as this.



Picture credited to Kylie Niemand

Clark’s acting career began at age eight in a summer program called “Destination Imagination.” However, his first role in a school production wasn’t until last year, when he was cast in Chicago, as Fred. Since then, he has had a very active membership in WATA, as an actor or as a member of the technical portion of a production, though he prefers acting.

“[Acting] allows you to create a character, to create an environment, which is different from your regular life. That places a sense of power in the actor in that you have control over the world that he or she is creating, and that world has power over an audience,” said Clark, when asked why he kept coming back to acting.

As an actor, Clark has many techniques and tricks he uses to help him better his performance. They include those which were recommended and those which he finds helpful to himself.

“If you can, you should walk onstage, and go through your blocking without the lines. That’s the first step. Next step, start your breathing patterns early. For our 1:00 performance, I had already started my breathing as soon as we were on the bus into Boston,” said Clark, “Don’t waste energy throughout the day. Don’t yell or run around, because energy is cumulative and you need to save it all up for your performance.”

Despite these and other techniques Clark uses to ready himself, he is still nervous come show time. He recognizes that everyone is nervous about making a mistake, and includes himself in that.

“I’m always nervous about [making] a decision on stage that was not rehearsed or that I haven’t talked over with other actors in the scene. If you’re in a performance and you make a choice based on your character, you have to stand by and justify that choice. That is something that can be very nerve wracking but very exciting at the same time,” said Clark.

Regardless of his nerves, Clark plans on further feeding his passion for acting next year as a senior, and even after that. He says that he’d like to stay involved in theatre as long as he can, including in his career.

“I plan on pursuing all aspects of theatre, not just acting, in my life. There are a lot of lessons I’ve learned from it in the few years I’ve participated in theatre at WA, and I would like those to keep influencing me for the rest of my life,” said Clark. “Whether that means I’m acting, or stage managing, or participating in technical roles, I would like to be involved.”

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The Apocalypse: Is it underway?

April 4th, 2011

By Jenie Michael

Staff Writer

Between 2000 and 2010, there have been a recorded 10,986 natural disasters. According to the United Nations ISDR, about 780,000 people have lost their lives in natural disasters in the last ten years. This is up fifty five percent from the 1990s. In just 2010, there were twenty two recorded earthquakes with a rating over 7.0, twenty one recorded hurricanes in just the Atlantic Ocean. The rise in natural disasters has been astounded many geologists and scientists, and breaking records at the same time. Could the apocalypse be on its way?

“I don’t think that everyone and everything will completely die, but then again we’ve been having a ton of extinctions from oil spills and such so…I don’t really know what to think,” said freshman Caroline Canning.

According to the Bible, “no man shall know” when the Apocalypse will happen. However, the rumored date is December 21, 2012, because that is the last date recorded on the Mayan calendar.

While it is the Bible that gave humans the idea of an apocalypse, it has become very much a part of today’s pop culture and society. There have been an endless number of movies, books, songs, and more each having something to do with the end of the world. Many have created facebook groups, blogs, etc regarding 2012 as well.

“This 2012 stuff has become a charlatans dream. By scaring everyone, they are able to sell books and ideas,” Said sophomore Jordan Freudlich of Boston Latin HS.

While there are many who believe the myth, most are skeptical. But as 2012 date approaches, more and more people have been building bomb shelters and storing food and other vital supplies in an effort to survive to see 2013.

The below is an image of a shelter meant to protect people from the apocalypse. It is built below ground and includes an air filter from the surface of the Earth, as well as spaces for food, water, batteries and emergency oxygen, if the filter were to fail for some reason.



However, with the rise of natural disasters, and the decline of economies everywhere, is it possible that the Mayans could be right? The calendar created by the Mayans cannot tell the date past December 21st of next year. Is this because they knew there would be no need for a calendar past such a date?

“My calendar runs out every year, and I just buy a new one. The world doesn’t end annually,” said Janet Keirstead, English teacher.

The definition of the apocalypse according to the Encarta Dictionary is “a book of the Bible that includes a description of the end of the world.” The end of the world. But what does that mean? How can the world just end?

Cory S. Powell, a science writer and Senior Editor at Discover Magazine as well as an adjunct professor of science journalism at New York University, is skeptical to the notion of the apocalypse, but can figure multiple possible scenarios which could end in the demolition of our planet. For instance, giant solar flares (or coronal mass ejections) could fry first the ozone in just a couple of hours. Another possibility that’s been theorized is the reversal of Earth’s magnetic field. Other ideas include asteroid impact, black holes, gamma ray burst, global epidemics, global warming, ecosystem collapse, to name a few.

“The idea that the world will just spontaneously end is rediculous. However, it is realistic to consider that we might kill our world with all the damage we’ve been doing to it,” said freshman Court Fiore.

At this point, the world can only wait to see what will happen on December 21, 2012.

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Children’s Letters to God: Revolutionizing the Black Box

March 31st, 2011


From left; Rohan Rastogi, Paulina McGrath, Ally Noble, Renee Craig, Ryan Cole, Emily Brown, Braley Degenhardt , David Ran, Tia Ryder, Maimuna Amhad, Peter Fidrych

by Jenie Michael

Staff Writer

The Black Box, Room 109, is both a classroom and a theatre. Until now, WATA has only used the room for small cast dramatic shows. Senior Brianna Ryder is changing WATA history.

“On the first New York trip with WATA that I was eligible to go on, which was my freshman year, I had asked Mr. Towers if there had ever been a musical in the Black Box, and he said, ‘No, but you might see one in your four years.’ And now, I guess I am,” said Ryder, Director of the first Black Box musical, Children’s Letters to God.

The was a lot of excitement surrounding the idea of a musical in the black box. Many were surprised, excited, and even scared.

“When I found out that Brianna was officially directing a musical, I cried. I was very happy,” said sophomore Tia Ryder who is playing Joanna in the musical.

The show was originally cast in January of this year. The auditions did not require a musical performance, so that aspect had to be done first thing at callbacks.

“The auditions themselves were just like a regular Black Box, so the singing was only at callbacks. It was definitely different because I’d never sang in the Black Box before, formally, so it was really a new experience,” said sophomore Emily Brown who is playing the part of LMFR (Lotus, Meadow, Flower, Rainbow) in the show.

The cast has rehearsed from 2pm-9pm every day of the week before its opening, and by now, has had a good amount time to get used to the idea of a Black Box Musical. Opening night was Thursday, March 24.

“I [was] not nervous for singing in the Black Box, I [was] just nervous for the whole thing! But just the music aspect [didn't] scare me,” said freshman Renee Craig who is playing the part of Alice.

As this is a musical, there are many more elements of the show that have to be controlled. For instance, the cast has to be able to act and sing, and there are instrumentals that have to be taken into account and space allocated on the stage.

The day before opening night, the director received the soundtrack to the original Broadway production, which they planned to use as instrumental accompaniment during the production. However, when the CD was played over the house speakers, it sounded ‘foggy’ as some cast members described it; that is, the sound was slightly distorted, and the voices seemed to be coming from a distance.

“It was devastating. A good number of us were on the brink of tears. While it may seem petty to those looking in from the outside, it did not seem so at the time. We had come this far, rehearsed this much, and then something as simple as background music could be such a huge detriment,” said freshman Tanvi Verma the Stage Manager of the production. “It was hard, but I’m sure we can push through it and still come out with a great show.”

After struggles to try to find a better alternative, Ryder decided that there would just be the actual soundtrack playing in the background, and the cast would have to work even harder to overpower the voices in the recording.

According to those in the audience on Thursday and Friday, the show was a success. Most of the viewers came out of the theatre exclaiming how ‘adorable’ and ‘hilarious’ the show was.

“I did notice some echoing in the background every once in a while, but it didn’t have too much of an impact on the show itself. Overall, it was really really good. Very funny and very cute,” said freshman Abby Crossely.

Children’s Letters to God will be performed again on Thursday, April 7th and Friday, April 8th at 3pm and 7pm. Tickets are $7 for students and $12 for adults.

“We’re making history right now, I don’t know if you realize that. This has never been done before, and it may never be done again. We’re going where no one else has dared to go,” said Ryder.

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