Students ridicule politicians to raise money for food bank
Phaedra Powell-Zecher
Every year, Cindy Powell’s Government students create political satire songs to perform in front of the school before winter break. This year they chose to sing about topics ranging from the gate crashers at the White House, to the recession, to health care. The students made up lyrics to go with already famous holiday songs.
One of the most memorable songs was “Guantanamo: Carol of the Bells” featuring the vocal talents of: David Salonen, Kaija Renielt, Joe Gilmour, Ramsey Walker, Katie Chale, Brooke Pringle and Cole Bazemore. The harmonizing voices in this group drew attention to the lyrics effectively. Lyrics such as “Imprisonment today, lock them away, no trials, they are terrorists.” Because Guantanamo is such a controversial issue in America today, it was helpful to the audience that the song was powerful and periodically intense.
A hilarious song that stood out was “Going Rogue: Baby It’s Cold Outside.” Abby Dolmseth, Alex Dolmseth, Sawyer Auer, John Gage, Claire Engelhard, Adria Engelhard, and Georgia Whitaker gave us a look at Sarah Palin’s new book, and her own personal misconceptions. Italian President Silvio Berlusconi, showed up in the satire with his many affairs, along with his wife. The “12 Days of Christmas” featuring Tynan Lazurus, Clara Kappelman, Sophie Nespor, Chrissy Swope, Marisa Samuelson, and Graeme Britz, represented Berlusconi’s frivolous life. The students were not the only ones to get in on the satire; humanities teachers Harris Levinson and Mike Zecher carried the crowd away at the end with their rendition of “Karzai the Snowman.”
