On Friday, Oct. 29, the courtyard at the Garrison School was transformed into a graveyard to celebrate “Dead Authors Day;” the day when the eighth-grade English students present stories by great literary figures of the past to the rest of the school. Garrison students and faculty were treated to skits about Mark Twain, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, Mary Shelley, Frank Dixon, Agatha Christie, Mildred A. Wirt Benson, E.B. White, H.P. Lovecraft and authors’ famous works.
“I think the whole school benefits from this great Garrison tradition,” said Ian Berger, Garrison English teacher and “Dead Authors Day” advisor. “The eighth graders really delve into the novels, and the lives of the authors, to create these great performances. The resulting message to the younger students is that reading is fun…but it can be more than that. You can actually live it.” Eighth-grader Emmanuelle Palikuca, who played Alice in the group that performed Alice in Wonderland noted, “We wanted to do something fun and entertaining for the kids who were watching.”
“At Garrison, we have the unique opportunity to watch our students mature and develop from kindergarten through the eighth grade and the Dead Authors Day is a great example of this,” said Garrison Principal, Stephanie Impellittiere. “The work they did today was very impressive and we are so proud of them.”
Thanks for sharing this story of a wonderful Garrison tradition – congratulations to all the portrayers.
Thanks for sharing this story of a wonderful Garrison tradition – congratulations to all the portrayers.