People - Lynnette Carr-Hicks

Miss Carr has a way of bringing music so that it makes sense to each of us, regardless of taste. I remember this one time in my Music in our lives class. We were all told to pick one song that represented our musical taste and bring it to class. Miss Carr played a portion of each song to the class and let us discuss why people would like them.

 

I remember I picked "No Good Deed" from Wicked, because I love Wicked - however NONE of my classmates had ever even heard of the show. As a matter of fact none seemed interested in Broadway in the least. So when it was my turn, I was expecting a lot of people to look at me strangely. However before Miss Carr could put No Good Deed on, the CD autoplayed the first song - and Miss Carr jumped in excitement! She suddenly said something that made me slightly doubt her sanity, it went something like this:

Did you hear this opening? It would be great for a rap singer's introduction!

My mind went "What? Broadway...and rap? Are you nuts?". From the looks of my classmates, some of them were thinking the same thoughts. However Miss Carr isn't one to just tell us how things are, she shows us! So she put the overture back to the beginning, pretended she was a rapper at a concert, and opened for herself - and I could see my classmates actually nod in awe as they realized it actually fit. I was equally shocked, because it really did fit!

 

Of course my classmates weren't the only ones who learned to appreciate what they normally would frown upon, I did too. As I heard some of my classmates's choices often I would automatically shut myself out, without even giving them a chance - but after every excerpt miss Carr would ask the picker, and other people, why the song was good. To my amazement, the reasons my classmates picked made sense, and as I got to listen to more I could actually hear the very beauty they heard.

One of Miss Carr's biggest accomplishments as a music teacher is probably the Westbury Show Choir. It's a choir that dances and performs for school concerts, outside performances, and of course the one big show at the end of the year. The show choir has of course performed for countless charitable events to fund music growth in schools, and has received great acclaim across Long Island.

However it's not always nice and dandy. With students that sometimes forget that each concert is around the corner, it takes a lot of guts to get everyone's attention and focus - especially when the numbers of students grow each year.

As if it weren't enough, various students get pulled out if they start misbehaving, or if they fail more than 2 classes. While the administration feels that pulling them away from extracurricular activities is best, those few kids are often crucial to the show - especially since Show Choir is really a class, not an extracurricular activity. There's always fuss about mess in the rooms during late night and even school break practices. So not only does Miss Carr have to deal with having to coordinate and prepare way too many students, she also has to keep the administration happy and make sure each student behaves as properly as a 1950's character

Lynette Carr-Hicks helps out the drama club with makeup

She has starred in off-Broadway productions.

She played Muzzy in Broadway's Thoroughly Modern Millie

She recorded a CD in Japan. She even played "Twinkle Twinkle Little Star" for us in class; she and her daughter were both singing in the CD with English AND Japanese lyrics.

She bought and played some of Mims's songs during class. Miss Carr's sense of Westbury loyalty are strong and she was proud that one of her students managed to be discovered.

I was invited to participate in the Squidoo Superhero Project, making 5 lenses in 2 weeks about the people who have inspired me, mentored me, changed the way I look at the world. The people I just want to say a big loud public THANKS to.

If you buy anything from this page, you'll automatically (for free, of course) be sending a royalty straight to the Squidoo Charity Fund, which pays out to nonprofits like JDRF and Room to Read and Donors Choose every month.