9 minute read
Prize Night 2022
Awards for academic excellence and other honors were presented to students at the annual Prize Night ceremony, held on May 28, 2022, under the tent on Edward Wersebe Memorial Field. Only a few of this year’s awards recipients appear on these pages. Congratulations to all of this year’s graduates and award winners!
The school’s three highest awards were presented during Commencement to students who were chosen by vote of the entire faculty. In keeping with tradition, the final diploma of the day was awarded to the Top Scholar for the Class of 2022.
The Brinsmade Prize, awarded to that student who best combines unselfish and sympathetic interest in people with a purpose for citizenship and social responsibility, was presented to Alex Warren ’22.
The Head of School’s Prize, awarded to a member of the graduating class who has contributed outstandingly to the success of the school year, was presented to Serdar Kaltalioglu ’22.
The Gunn Cup, presented to that student who, through character and achievement, contributed most largely to the success of the school year, was awarded to Eddie Rayhill ’22.
To view more Prize Night photos, go to http://bit.ly/PrizeNight22.
Founders day, NEIRA 2022, and head of the charles
After a two-year hiatus during the global pandemic, the Founders Day Regatta returned to Lake Waramaug on Sunday, May 8, 2022. Some 500 student-athletes representing more than a dozen teams from independent and public high schools throughout the region were scheduled to participate. However, crosswinds of 18 to 27 mph were consistent throughout the day and made the first 500 meters un-rowable, according to Boys Varsity Head Coach Lincoln Turner. A few shortened heats from varying distances were raced for fun by the first and second boats, and the grand and petit finals were called off in the afternoon. It was one of the few times Founders Day has been canceled due to weather conditions since the regatta was established in the spring of 1959.
“We were thrilled to welcome back Founders Day,” said Athletic Director Mike Marich P’23 ’24. “While the weather didn’t cooperate, it was a great community event as always. It was disappointing for the student-athletes who wanted to compete, and for our coaches who help to plan and run the regatta, but there was just a great sense of community. It was still just an awesome day to be together outside in a beautiful spot.”
Gunn Girls and Boys Varsity Crew participated in the 2022 NEIRA Championships at Lake Quinsigamond in Worcester, Massachusetts, on May 28. In the Girls Fours, the first and second boats placed third and the fifth boat placed fourth. In the Boys Fours, the first boat placed third and the fifth boat placed second. Dave RIng, Assistant Coach for Pomfret, commented on the results on
Row2K, noting: “In the B5/6 race, with roughly 300 meters to go, Taft and Gunn clashed oars causing both to lose all momentum and be overtaken by BB&N. It appeared that Taft moved into Gunn’s lane.”
This fall, Gunn returned to Cambridge for the 2022 Head of the Charles Regatta. The event marked The Frederick Gunn School’s 50th year of racing in the world’s largest three-day rowing competition. The boys boat — Hugo Vilbois ’23 (stroke seat), Taji Duncan ’23 (third seat), Jack Nettleton ’24 (second seat), Sam Williams ’24 (first seat), and Aria Trotta ’23 (coxswain) — was one of 90 competing in the Men’s Youth Four, which included a team from Ukraine. Gunn placed 58th out of 90 boats in the Men’s Youth Four. “They rowed a great race but the race is filled with crashes and clashing of oars,” Turner said. “Sometimes there are traffic jams, and if you can’t get out of the traffic jam, you can only be as fast as the slowest boat in that group. That’s where we ended up, but the kids had a lot of fun.”
Mark your calendar for the 2023 Founders Day Regatta Sunday, May 7, 2023, at Lake Waramaug.
Alumni, families and friends are invited to cheer on our Highlanders!
Boys Varsity Lacrosse CAPTURES Colonial Cup Championship TITLE
The Boys Varsity Lacrosse Team beat both Canterbury and Pomfret in tournament play on May 21, becoming the 2022 Colonial Cup Champions.
“It was a total team effort. They needed each other to accomplish this,” Athletic Director and Head Boys Lacrosse Coach Mike Marich P’23 ’24 said following the team’s championship win. “I was really proud of the way the guys handled themselves. They represented themselves, their families, and our school with class.”
Boys Varsity Lacrosse ended their regular season with a record of 11-5 and were the number 3 seed in the Colonial Tournament, which was established in 2015 by Gunn, Pomfret School, Canterbury School, and The Williston Northampton School. This year’s regular season games among the four schools were all close, and the four teams were evenly matched heading into the tournament, which was hosted this year by Williston in Easthampton, Massachusetts.
Gunn played Canterbury first, sealing a 7-3 victory, before heading to the finals against Pomfret. “We were able to jump out to a 5-1 lead at half, but Pomfret, to their credit, came roaring back. The guys fought all day long and we were able to hold on for a 6-5 win. It was very exciting. We were up a goal with about four minutes left. It was backand-forth action, chances on both sides that neither team were able to finish. So it was sort of fast and furious at the end, and we were able make some key stops, get the ball back and run out the clock. We were the Colonial Cup Champions. It was awesome.”
For the first time in 16 years, Boys Varsity Lacrosse was also named the winner of the McKee Cup, after defeating Berkshire School 7-6 at home on May 2. The silver cup was first awarded in 2006 in a moving ceremony by its donors, Libby and Rusty McKee ’72 P’06, whose twin sons, Parker and Will McKee ’06, were captains of the Boys Varsity Lacrosse teams at Berkshire and Gunn, respectively. “We hope that future coaches and players understand and live the meaning of what the Cup stands for: a celebration of School, Team and Sportsmanship,” Rusty and Libby said in a note to then-Head of School Susan Graham H’12. Will was inducted into Gunn’s Athletic Hall of Fame in 2011, and Rusty was an outstanding athlete in his own right at Gunn.
Ultimate Wins State Championship
Gunn Ultimate Frisbee won the Connecticut High School Ultimate League (CTUL) Division II Championship on May 21 at The Hotchkiss School. A total of 14 teams competed in the tournament. Gunn beat North Branford High School to capture the Division II title.
Highlanders earn all-american, all-league, and all-staR recognition
A dozen members of the Boys Varsity Lacrosse Team received post-season league recognition. Eddie Rayhill ’22 was named U.S. Lacrosse High School All-American for the 2022 season, and Parker Hoffman ’24 was named the William Labelle Offensive Player of the Year by the Western New England Secondary School Lacrosse Association (WNESSLA). Four Highlanders earned WNESSLA First Team, All-League honors: Owen Laatsch ’25, Blake Maracle ’22, Andrew Rainville ’24 and Théo Weidinger ’22. Trey Bessett ’22,
Luke Calabria ’25, William Marich ’23, Mike Pizzo ’23, Allan Szydlowski ’22, and Christian Wood ’23 were selected for WNESSLA All-League Honorable Mention.
Five members of the Boys Varsity Baseball Team earned All-League honors from the highly competitive Western New England Prep School Baseball League (WNEPBL). Alex Rosario ’22 earned First Team All-League honors, and TJ Addonizio ’24, Will Bartoli ’25, Gavin Brown ’22, and Leo Vitarelli ’25 earned Second Team All-League honors.
From Varsity Softball, Jordan Hopping ’24 earned Western New England Prep School Softball League(WNEPSSL) All-League, All-Star honors.
A Blossoming Music Program
Students in the Gunn Music Program had a chance to shine at the end of Spring Term. A Chamber Concert on April 29 showcased impressive solo performances by 17 students, who performed a wide range of musical styles, including songs by Etta James, Vaughan Williams, Beethoven, Bach, and Adele. On May 17 and 18, students in String Ensemble, Vocal Ensemble, and Jazz Band performed the annual spring concert, Swing Into Spring! The repertoire included a vibrant mix of classical and contemporary music, from Tchaikovsky to Count Basie to Coldplay.
At the spring concert, Ron Castonguay, Director of the Arts and Music Director, instituted a new tradition by presenting three
Music Program awards. “Our music students work extremely hard all year long and many have earned recognition in addition to outstanding performances,” Castonguay said. “These are national awards that music programs give out at the end of each school year. Each recipient received a certificate and their name is engraved on a plaque that is displayed outside Room 106 in TPACC, one of two practice rooms for all of our ensembles. We have many phenomenal students in our program and I am extremely proud of these three musicians, who are the first recipients of these awards. They set the standard of excellence within our program.”
The 2022 National Choral Award was presented to Audrey Richards ’23. This award is presented to a student who consistently demonstrates a superior work ethic, versatile vocal abilities, and a willingness to continue to improve at the craft of singing.
The 2022 National Orchestra Award was presented to Yoyo Zhang ’22, who only started cello as a freshman and performed a Bach Prelude at the Chamber Concert! This award is presented to a student who consistently demonstrates a superior work ethic, a wonderful sense of teamwork through modeled behavior, and a willingness to continue to improve at the mastery of skills on a string instrument.
The 2022 Louis Armstrong Jazz Award was presented to Hugo Vilbois ’23. This award is given to a student who consistently demonstrates a superior work ethic, leadership skills showcased through mentoring, and an innate desire to explore all facets of musical styles, especially in the realm of jazz and blues.
Off to Orlando!
In the fall, Castonguay announced that The Frederick Gunn School has been selected to perform in the STARS Stage Performance Program at Universal Studios in Orlando, Florida. Fifty students in Vocal Ensemble, String Ensemble, and Jazz Band are invited to perform April 29, 2023, on the amazing CityWalk Stage that sits on the lake between Universal Studios and Islands of Adventure.
“This is huge, not only for our Music Program, but also for our school,” Castonguay said. “There’s nothing like a high school music trip and this will be a first for The Frederick Gunn School. I am very excited about this amazing performance opportunity for our students.”
Theatre Program Wins Three Halo Awards
The cast and crew of the 2021 fall play, The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane, and 2022 winter musical, The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee, received a total of 14 nominations and won three Halo High School Theater Awards on June 2. Now in their 19th year, the Halo Awards celebrate the best in Connecticut high school theater. The awards were presented at a gala red carpet event at the Palace Theater in Waterbury and featured a live musical performance by Audrey Richards ’23 and Colin Hall ’24, who reprised “My Favorite Moment of the Bee” in their respective roles as Olive Ostrovsky and William Barfée from The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee. “What a great night for live theatre, young theatre-makers and The Frederick Gunn School,” said Kent Burnham, Director of Theatre Arts.
Congratulations to our 2022 Halo Award winners!
Best Comic Male Performance In A Musical Alder Curry ’22 as Leaf Coneybear in The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee
Best Scenic Design And/Or Execution
Natalie Perkins ’22, Siena Taylor ’23 and Aryel Sealey ’25 for The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane
Best Female Standout Performance In An Ensemble Production
Audrey Richards ’23 as Pellegrina/Martin/ Margory/Jack/Crow Pellegrina/Lydia Clarke for The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane
In the Round Shakespeare Project Adds New Dimension to Theatre Program
In May, students in Kent Burnham’s Drama I: Theatre in Practice class performed an adaptation of William Shakespeare’s Twelfth Night. The cast included both new and experienced thespians who performed the play in the round, which represented a new and creative use of the theatre space in the Tisch Family Auditorium. The Twelfth Night Shakespeare Project was such a success, it will become an annual event featuring additional works by Shakespeare or other plays, said Burnham, who is now in his second year as Director of Theatre Arts.
“I love creating and working in ways that demystify Shakespeare,” said Burnham, who earned his MFA in classical acting from George Washington University/The Shakespeare Project in Washington, D.C. Students in his Drama I class are “learning about text, how to handle heightened language, make strong character choices, as well as how to put on a Shakespeare play.”
Twelfth Night involved just seven actors who played numerous roles. “They were all standouts,” Burnham said, explaining, “We performed it in a thrust configuration, so the audience was on three sides. That facilitates real audience interaction. The lights are on the actors, as well as the audience, so all could be seen. It was a fantastic experience for all involved.”
Burnham has a steady stream of ideas for where to take the Theatre Program next. This fall, he collaborated with English teacher Rod Theobald P’09 ’14 to present an in-class workshop for students studying Shakespeare’s Much Ado About Nothing, and in October, Burnham and Theobald took 23 students and faculty to a performance of A Raisin in the Sun by Lorraine Hansberry at Sharon Playhouse in Sharon, Connecticut. The play brought together lessons being discussed in current English and acting classes.
Also in October, Burnham invited Lisa Wolpe, an expert on gender-flipping Shakespeare as well as an actress, director, teacher, writer, traveler, and distinguished scholar, to spend two days as a guest artist in residence at Gunn. Wolpe presented her powerful one-woman show, Shakespeare and the Alchemy of Gender, to students, faculty, families, and the community, met with students in Burnham’s Advanced Acting class, and led a two-hour work session with the cast of the fall play, Men on Boats.