Spring, 2023 - Feature

Iconic 2000s movie, Twilight (2008)--a perfect rainy-day feature flick

by Shannon Rittie

Twilight, which made its debut in 2008, elicited the most diverse responses from viewers. Vampires, werewolves, and love are all mixed together in this movie. Twilight is in the romance/fantasy genre. The vampire family (the Cullens) featured in the movie lived secretly in the small town of Forks, which is close to Washington state. At the beginning of the movie, Bella Swan, the main character, moved to this city to live with her father, where she met Edward, a man she had her doubts about since her first day of school. Bella developed a love for Edward as she got to know him better. The movie's lesson is quite beautiful: the decisions you make don't have to be determined by the challenges you encounter along the way. Twilight undoubtedly had beautiful scenery and a compelling plot, despite perhaps not having the best acting.

Twilight was a hit with the fans but not so much with critics. Some people don't like what the producers did to vampires, like giving them sparkly skin, while others found the lack of a plot in the Twilight film irritating. Personally, I believe Twilight is the perfect movie to watch inside on a gloomy day. Despite what some people may think of Twilight, I really liked this movie. Twilight received criticism for not being scary enough, but in my opinion, this film was targeted more at adolescent girls who want to see a love story unfold. Overall, I think Twilight is a great movie to watch if you want to see a vampire and werewolf love story come to life while also taking in the stunning scenery the movie has to offer.

Exclusive: Experiencing 9 to 5

by Allison Iliff

One of the prides of our school is our theater department. For years it has been a staple of Newton High School, drawing in hundreds of people every year to support the talent this school produces. Despite there being a great love for theater in both our school and town, not many people know all the hard work and dedication that goes into putting on a performance.

You first go through two to three auditions which involve singing, dancing, and acting. After these take place, you get the cast list, and get catapulted into the rehearsal process. For the next three months, you spend your weeks learning songs, dances, and scenes. After they are all learned, you spend the rest of the time perfecting them. While this process is long and can be tiring, it is all worth it once you have your first preview. For the first time in those three months, you get to perform for an audience. Then you have the actual performances. There is a certain sense of pride felt when you perform what you have worked tirelessly on for months. And then you take your final bow, and the show is over. Even if there were times when you hated the show you were doing, or you were sick of going to practice everyday; in that moment it’s all forgotten. All you know is the immense love you have for that show.

This year's show, 9 to 5, was no different. It was well received by the crowd, but even more so by the students who participated in it. We all became a family, and even though we’ll see each other in the halls or hang out over the weekend, we had to say goodbye to what we built, and it was heartbreaking. There are a lot of aspects of the show that I’ve deemed indescribable or special, but none of them compare to the family you make over those three months. Even if you’re not the best singer or dancer in the world, join just to become a part of something that is so much bigger than yourself.

I feel honored to say that I was part of Newton High School’s theater department my entire High School career. I would recommend joining to anyone who showed any interest in theater. Even when people showed absolutely no interest, I would still recommend that they join. There is a magic to theater that cannot be described, only experienced. You might think it’s too late, you’ve never done it before, you’re scared; it is worth it to join. It is never too late, and there are amazing people who will help guide you through that journey. Our theater department gets better and better every year. There is no time like the present, so experience something bigger than yourself. Experience something incredible. Experience Newton High School Theater.

Newton’s performance of 9 to 5 takes the stage

by Christine Ahmad

Newton High school’s spring musical put on an outstanding performance of 9 to 5 based on the 1980s film. The musical was about three women in New York City, Violet, Judy, and Doralee, who each had their own struggles in the workplace. They finally have enough of the disrespect and underpayment from their “sexist egotistical lying hypocritical bigot” boss, Franklin Hart, and decide to come together to run the company. After an accidental rat poison in Hart’s coffee incident from Violet, the girls worked together to kidnap and keep Hart kept away from everyone he could possibly tell.

While he was tied up, the women kept the workplace flowing, making a few changes along the way. They got many comments from coworkers on how the workplace had recently improved and was a happier environment. The woman continued to run it their way until Hart finally escaped. He came back to the office and was ready to tell everyone just what these women had done. His plans to ruin them slowly ceased as he saw how the environment changed and the plans the women had told Hart's boss and he was impressed.

Eliza Halteman (Violet), Avery Frank (Judy), and Alli Iliff (Doralee) were the lead women coming together. These three girls worked very well together and made the play entertaining. They kept the audience laughing during the entire performance. Not only was their acting incredible, their vocals and the entire cast were excellent. Hart was played by Thaylor Sibblies and he did a great job portraying the boss as well as singing.

All of the hard work the cast, crew, and band had put into really shined through. The whole performance came together and was incredible to watch.

A mythical take on self healing; Melanie Martinez’s Portals album

by Loretta Samples

Melanie Martinez is a music artist who recently released her third album, Portals, a mythical fairy themed album filled with lyrics that more than show how far she has come as a person and artist. For those who may not be familiar with her, she started out her career back in 2012. She appeared on the American talent show The Voice, performing a cover of “Toxic” by Britney Spears. Later, she would come out with the single “Dollhouse” and followed suit by an album named Cry Baby in 2015. She became a sensation quite quickly, with songs such as “Pity Party,” “Dollhouse” and “Cry Baby” being on tons of people’s playlists by early 2016. She always wrote intense emotion into her songs, making them feel personal as well as resonate with those who shared the same experiences.

On March 31 this year, she released Portals, then followed by two singles, “Death” and “Void”. It follows a story of her character, cry baby, passing on and being a reborn fairy nymph. Right away, it was very clear this album was not anything like her previous albums nor songs. She rebranded completely as a bring pink, four eye having creature, departing from her own human appearance. Even the song styles of the album are very different from previous, giving a feeling of subjective artistry instead of a pop song feel beat. We follow as she explores topics of reincarnation, heartbreak, emotional healing, and trauma through the lyrics of her songs. Portals truly feels like an album made by Melanie and for Melanie.

Quoted from her official Twitter account, she comments, “I hope the weight of mortality that society has placed on people becomes lighter. I hope grief becomes easier for people while listening to this record,” showing her intent to make music that can help her heal, and those like her who may be struggling with their own grips on reality.

From a personal standpoint, I believe the Portals album is beautiful, from its symbolism, lyrics, all the way down to the general design of characters and album cover art. It is easy to see how long term fans and even new fans may not be able to enjoy the album or new change from her classic kindergarten and dollhouse themes, but from an artistic view, it is worth the listen to see and observe the evolution as Melanie comes to terms with her own feelings and emotions through her music.

Spring Addition Senior Spotlight: Allison Iliff

by Jordan Short

Alli is a very well known person in the halls of Newton High School. From being in theater, wearing awesome outfits, and overall having a wonderful personality.

I interviewed Alli so I could get to know more about this incredible person.

Q: What is your favorite part about being a Newton Brave?

A: I like the community that comes with being a Brave. If you’re a Brave, no matter who you are or what group you’re in, you're a part of something. I think that Braves stick together and we are a very proud bunch.

Q: What part of senior year are you most excited about?

A: I was most excited about the musical which was March 17-19. I was a lead this year and it was everything I hoped it would be and more. The cast was incredible. It was so fun and I loved every second of it.

Q: What are three things you would tell your freshman self if you were given the chance?

A: I would tell her it gets better after COVID; the senior lounge was worth the wait and please keep your grades up.

Q: What is your biggest accomplishment since being at Newton High School?

A: Getting into National Honors Society was a big deal for me because I was in Junior Honor Society in middle school and I really wanted to be a part of that again.

Q: What achievements have you had so far this year that you are proud of?

A: This year I made it onto the varsity team in tennis and I was the lead in this year's musical. These are the two things that matter the most to me because I’ve been a part of both of them all four years, so being able to rise to the top in both of them was good for me.

Q: If you could give incoming freshmen a piece of advice about high school what would it be?

A: Find a good group of people that you know will support you through all of your endeavors and stay with them

Q: Is there a teacher that has really impacted you during high school and what would you like to say to them?

A: Mr. Scullin. I have known him long before high school. My sister is eight years older than me so I knew him when she was in high school. He has taught me so much as a teacher and as a director; he is such an incredible person. He teaches with such a passion that you can tell he clearly loves what he is doing. And he doesn’t need to be the director of the musical, but he still devotes so much time to the cast and the community who loves that department and I think that should be recognized frequently.