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High School Confronts Race And Privilege In Production Of Hairspray

Chion Wolf
/
Connecticut Public Radio
Simsbury High School students Ainsley Thompson, Shamar Sutton, and Director of Theater Stuart Younse

Sheff v. O’Neill, the landmark desegregation case in Connecticut, has shaped school systems in the greater Hartford region for decades. The state of Connecticut has announced it reached a settlement with the plaintiffs. This hour, we hear more from CT Mirror education reporter Jacqueline Rabe Thomas.

Connecticut’s Open Choice program, where students from Hartford travel to suburban schools, has been part of the state’s desegregation solution under Sheff. Simsbury High School is one of those schools.

This weekend the high school will perform the musical, Hairspray. The production has opened up an opportunity for students and the larger Simsbury community to talk about race and privilege. We hear from student members of the cast.

Information and tickets for Simsbury High School's production of Hairspray here.

Join the conversation on Facebook and Twitter.

GUESTS:

  • Jacqueline Rabe Thomas - Reporter for the Connecticut Mirror (@jacquelinerabe)
  • Stuart Younse - Director of Theater at Simsbury High School
  • Shamar Sutton - Senior at Simsbury High School; plays Duane in the school’s production of Hairspray
  • Ainsley Thompson - Senior at Simsbury High School; plays Penny Pingleton in the school’s production of Hairspray
  • DeRon Williams - Assistant professor of theater, coordinator for the concentration directing, dramaturgy, and cultural performance.

Chion Wolf contributed to this show.

Lucy leads Connecticut Public's strategies to deeply connect and build collaborations with community-focused organizations across the state.
Carmen Baskauf was a producer for Connecticut Public Radio's news-talk show Where We Live, hosted by Lucy Nalpathanchil from 2017-2021. She has also contributed to The Colin McEnroe Show.

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SOMOS CONNECTICUT es una iniciativa de Connecticut Public, la emisora local de NPR y PBS del estado, que busca elevar nuestras historias latinas y expandir programación que alza y informa nuestras comunidades latinas locales. Visita CTPublic.org/latino para más reportajes y recursos. Para noticias, suscríbase a nuestro boletín informativo en ctpublic.org/newsletters.

The independent journalism and non-commercial programming you rely on every day is in danger.

If you’re reading this, you believe in trusted journalism and in learning without paywalls. You value access to educational content kids love and enriching cultural programming.

Now all of that is at risk.

Federal funding for public media is under threat and if it goes, the impact to our communities will be devastating.

Together, we can defend it. It’s time to protect what matters.

Your voice has protected public media before. Now, it’s needed again. Learn how you can protect the news and programming you depend on.