WPCNR STAGE DOOR. By John F. Bailey June 10, 2007:
Violinest Helen Hess and the divine soprano, Kirsten
Smayda, seniors of White Plains Class of 2007 were
presented with Westco Productions first Annual Sonny
Katz Scholarships of $1,000 each Sunday at the Crowne
Plaza Hotel in the name of longtime City Marshall,
raconteur and entertainer, Sonny Katz. The occasion
attracted over 50 persons whose support today has funded
next year’s award, said Susan Katz, “The First Lady of
White Plains Theater,” and founder of Westco
Productions. The ceremony awarded the first Sonny Katz
Scholarships on the eve of Mr. Katz's 86th birthday.
State
Senator Suzi Oppenheimer, State Assemblyman Adam Bradley
were on hand to present the Scholarship Checks of $1,000
each to the girls and declare the need for government to
support arts programs in the schools. Councilman Glen
Hockley, in his remarks spoke of the need to support the
arts and community appreciation of them. A Who's Who of
White Plains attended, including Robert Ruger, Judges
JoAnn Friia and Eric Press, Paul Bergens, the noted
attorney, Jim Benerofe, the respected journalist, the
Westco Board of Directors, and Mr. Katz's family and
friends. In the photo op above, Left to right, Susan
Katz, Assemblyman Adam Bradley, Helen Hess, Kirsten
Smayda, State Senator Suzi Oppenheimer, and the White
Plains original, Sonny Katz.
Former city
corporation council, Tony Grant was Master of
Ceremonies, and he began the festivities with two
wonderful stories of his own 24 year-old daughter’s
budding career in her first film role, in which he
watched her in her first ever movie scene. When the
director challenged him as to what he was doing on the
set. Mr. Grant said he replied, “I’m her father and I’m
watching my daughter on the set.” He said, the director
said, “You’re doing fine. Keep doing what you’re doing.”
Mr. Grant’s story was just the right way to start the
afternoon of hope that the Sonny Katz Scholarships were
established to encourage students to make careers in the
arts. Westco is the first community theater organization
to introduce a scholarship program for the performing
arts, Mr. Grant said.
Kirsten Smayda,
the divine soprano with the dazzling smile, of White
Plains High School, star of 5 WPHS musical productions,
member of the school Symphony Orchestra, Choir, Mixed
Ensemble and Honors String Ensemble, receives her $1,000
check from State Senator Suzi Oppenheimer as Sarina
Russell, Scholarship Fund Co-Chair looks on with pride.
Suzi
Oppenheimer, the State Senator, presenting the award to
Kirsten Smayda, a classical singer who will be attending
the Boston University to study opera, told a similar
story of performing arts success in her family. She told
of her very own niece who is deaf, and who told the
family she was going to become a film actress. Senator
Oppenheimer beamed with pride telling how her niece has
landed a key role in the television series, Jericho,
which she proudly said had just been renewed. It was
living proof that a career in the arts is hard but you
can do it if you believe in yourself.
Adam
Bradley presenting to Ms. Hess said the state needs to
fund arts in the schools to a greater extent to assure
the continued emergence of young artists like Ms. Smayda
and Ms. Hess. Ms. Hess is Concertmistress of the WPHS
Symphony Orchestra and performs wit the musical pit
orchestra and the Honors String Ensemble. A member of
the Greater Westchester Youth Orchestras, and Area --All
State Orchestras and the chamber music group YNOS, will
be attending Boston Conservatory of Music in the fall,
pursuing a degree in viola performance.
Ms. Smayda
said what an honor it was to audition for the
scholarship, and thanked the organization for splitting
the $2,000 for the award between Ms. Hess and herself.
Ms. Smayda and Ms. Hess are close friends who perform
together. Most recently the previous evening at Trinity
Methodist Church, 75 persons watched them and their
friends perform an hour and a half concert. A person who
saw that concert said the ladies were “superterrific.”
The
supporters of the Scholarship in attendance heard that
evidence firsthand when Ms. Smayda performed a operatic
piece, Bocci Bocci, a multi tempoed piece in
which she articulated her marvelous clear voice up and
down the register in staccato in adagios, holding the
audience and causing even the servers to stop their work
and listen to her clear, striking voice.
Then Ms. Hess
opened up her violin case and performed First
Fantasy 1 by Pleman, the first movement. Her
violin’s authority, her mellow precise blending tone in
live performance hushed the restaurant, playing the
heart and senses of the audience as only a violin solo
can.
The
scholarships were chosen by audition, with both girls
playing before the Scholarship Committee of Sarina
Russell and Bill Van Vlack.
Ms.
Hess told WPCNR she is attending the Boston Conservatory
of Music next fall: “I’m studying viola performance.
What I love about Boston is they have a music theater
program, and I’m really excited about playing in the
(orchestra) pits there, because that’s what I love to do
with music.” For an ambition, she hopes to play in pit
orchestras on Broadway, or join a professional
orchestra, professional quartet, or “something with a
group.”
Ms. Hess told
how she got her start: “I started violin when I was
seven, mostly because my uncle had played it, and I
thought he was the coolest person in the world. I said I
wanted to play too. When I was ten, I picked up the
viola for an audition for an orchestra. My teacher, was
like, try it out see how it works. If you like it you
can continue. I loved it, so I just continued with both
of them since. People always ask me which one do you
like better. I really can’t decide. It’s like deciding
between two kids, you can’t pick which one you like
better. They’re both different and they’re both great in
their own way."
Ms. Hess has a
one-hour professional lesson each week, with Rebecca
Eckfeld. Ms. Hess splits the hour between violin and
viola. When she was practicing for auditions, she had
two one-hour lessons a week on each instrument. She said
she plays one to two hours a day between all the
orchestras and groups she is in.
WPCNR asked
her about the White Plains High School music program.
She gave it high marks:
“White Plains
has an exceptionally good music program, a lot of really
good teachers, qualified people. We’re fortunate that we
have a pit orchestra for our music. Not a lot of high
schools have a good enough music program to do that.”
She said
William Eckfeld, of White Plains High School, the
husband of her private teacher, was a great influence on
her: “He helps me. He accompanies me in my solo recitals
when I perform. He has been a really big help.”
Helen
Hess, lower left, with sister Mariane and her mother,
Debra
She comes from
a musical family: “Both my parents went into college as
musicians. They didn’t finish as musicians they changed.
They’re both very supportive. They love music. They’re
always helping. Sometimes I’ll be practicing and my Dad
will be walking through, and he’ll say, that’s very good
you’re getting a lot better at that. Sometimes when I’m
preparing an audition, sometimes he’ll be helping me on
how to get more of a feeling out of something. My mom
drove me to every single college audition. She was with
me every step of the way.”
The
Divine Soprano, Kirsten Smayda, whose voice has
highlighted White Plains "High School Musicals" for the
last four years.
Ms. Smayda,
whom WPCNR had the pleasure of viewing in the White
Plains High School production of Kiss Me, Kate, this
spring echoed her friend’s praise of the high school
music department:
“It definitely
is special. You get such a wide variety of people with
completely different interests from you. But, there’s
always that one connection to music and performing. It’s
great. You get to meet a lot of people you wouldn’t
normally meet. It’s such a supporting and loving
community.”
WPCNR asked
what her typical week was like: “It’s sort of been more
relaxed since we’re coming to the end of the school
year. I take violin lessons on Thursday. Voice lessons
on Wednesday. I try and practice each at least an hour a
day, give or take. I always have to vocalize every day
to keep it up. Just like very other muscle you have to
keep it in shape.”
Ms. Smayda had
five college auditions, and also sent in tapes of
performances, from No, No Nanette and recordings of two
classical pieces. “I didn’t realize until the end of the
audition process that I realized I wanted to concentrate
on opera and classical training. It’s interesting, if I
hadn’t done that sort of musical theatre and opera
preparation for the auditions, who knows?”
“I plan to
attend Boston University and double major in vocal
performance and psychology. I wanted to keep the
academics, but knew I couldn’t let go of vocal
performance. Whatever I do, I’ll keep up the vocal.
Ms. Smayda
said she was originally trained with classical “basic
training.” “From there, you can really take it however
you want. I started dabbling in musical theater to
prepare for the shows at school. But I think my voice
has sort of come full circle and it came back to
classical. It feels a lot more comfortable.”
The
Supporting Cast: Ms. Smayda, with her father, Greg
Smayda and her mother, Beth, whom she credits with
developing her interest in the singing.
Ms. Smayda
credits her mother with stirring her interest in voice
performance: “My mom has played a humongous part in it.
She used to take voice lessons since high school,
continuing through college and graduate school. I used
to go into the city with her when I was young for
her voice lessons every once in awhile. It seemed like
such a thrill going into the city, you know, going into
someone’s apartment, and just singing. I guess I got
some of the genetics, because I’ve been able to carry
out. It’s crazy. At church we’ll sing duets and you can
hear it’s sort of the same voice. I hope one day I hope
I can reach where she’s gotten so far.”
The
beloved Mr. Katz, who has helped so many people in his
life in White Plains, on the eve of his 86th
birthday, a big band singer and entertainer in the 30s,
and an actor himself, reminisced about his own days on
the stage, and encouraged the audience “to get the
autographs of these young ladies today, because they’re
going to go far.”
Susan
Katz at podium salutes her father, the one and only
Sonny Katz, as "The Wind Beneath My Wings," Mr. Katz is
just below the television monitor in the left of the
picture. Mr. Katz has helped so many in White Plains,
has done so much good in his life, that he is an example
to the Scholarship Winners as to what the arts, interest
in them, and in people can do.
