The Final Burn

Fren

ch W

oods

Fes

tival

O

f the

Per

form

ing

Arts

WIN

TER

OFF

ICE

PO B

ox 7

7010

0C

oral

Spr

ings

, Flo

rida

330

77

1-80

0-63

4-17

03 i

n FL

954

-346

-745

5

All t

he n

ew

s t

hat’s

fit

to p

rin

t.

See y

ourself

in t

he F

ren

ch W

oods P

erform

er.

The Perform

er is only as good as the contributions we receive from

the French Woods

comm

unity. Let us know w

hat is going on in your life. Your camp friends love to hear w

hat you are doing. D

o you have a performance or concert com

ing up? Have you seen or spoken to

French Woods friends? H

ow did your sports team

do this season? We also w

elcome your pho-

tos and any creative writing you m

ay want to see in print. It’s your big chance! W

rite us at P.O.

Box 770100, C

oral Springs, FL 33077-0100 or give us a call at 1-800-634-1703. You can also send us E-m

ail at admin@

frenchwoods.com

. Visit our web site at w

ww

. frenchwoods.com

. W

e all love hearing from you!

THE PERFOR

MER

IS YOU

R N

EWSLETTER

!!! French Woods Fe s t i va l o f the Pe r f or ming Ar ts

S e p t e m b e r 2 0 1 0

P E R F O R M E RThe

I n f o r m i n g T h e F r e n c h W o o d s C o m m u n i t y

In this Issue: • 2010 Highlights • Ron, Isaac & Beth • The 2011 Show List

2011 Show List Enclosed!

This summer, I managed to direct two shows that will be toward the top of my favorite French Woods experiences. Thank you to my wonderful casts and crew. Make sure you keep me updated on what you’re doing out in the world and I look forward to seeing you all soon!Now that the summer is over, we are starting to determine the staff who will return for next summer and looking at registrations for next year’s campers. So many people are excited to return! You may not have been home long, but we are already looking at how we can make next summer even better than this one. Our theater schedule is being fine tuned and new programs being consid-ered. Stay well, See you in 2011!

Circus elite, magic and horseback camp were a blast this summer! The magic and circus shows on Saturday were incredible! It was amazing to see how much these campers learned in so little time. As always, the week was very relaxing and a great time was had by all. We hope to have more of you join us for Post Camp 2011!

As always, lost items that are labeled with the owners’ names are returned shortly after camp ends. All non-labeled items will be donated to charity.

Postcamp

Lost and Found

Fondly,

Ron & Barbara

Summer forty one is now past, but who’s counting. Each year seems better than the last. Any way, it’s time to thank all the kids I worked with this sum-mer starting with Drowsy, Carmen Jones, Blood Brothers, Candide and Hairspray. I loved working with the Cabaret Troupe and even the kids I worked with on a passing basis. In fact, this was definitely the best summer ever.

We have many plans in the works for next year. One thing is for sure, it is time for me to direct a middle camp show. The show schedule is tentative-ly formed and it looks great. The fact that we have been offered “Next to Normal” is really special.

Barbara and I leave for Florida next week and the office follows on the 17th. Keep in touch. We love to hear from you.

Dear Frenchwoodite,

Beth Backstage

Abigail MillerAbigail RunyonAlexa GoldbergAlexa MarkAlexa SilvermanAlexis FedericoAlice BarlowAliza ChazinAlyssa FinferAlyssa MarkowitzAlyssa PolandAlyxandra MagnusAmanda BresslerAmanda LewisAmy SokolowAmy Serena GeigerAndrea DevitoAndrew KrinickAndrew CohenAndy O’brienAnna VasilyevaAnnie PolachekAriana PerlsonArianna CaiolaAriel TombackAsher MuldoonAustin WeberAyla Guttman

Bennie WeberBianca FeinerBradley RubensteinBrett GrossBrette MillerBrittney FeldmanCaitlin Dullahan BatesCaitlyn MeagherCameron BonhurstCara YoungCaroline CannonCarolyn FriedmanCayce KolodneyCayla Brooke WernerCharlie MortonCharlotte WolfChloe HechterChloe JosephChloe KesslerDanielle LippmanDanielle LoweDominic Shoucair Dullahan BatesEitan OfeckEleonore MeningaudEli ChazinEliana KavouriadisEliana Stern

Elijah “Eli” SchildkrautEmery SchafferEmily CroninEmily GriffinEmma BerkenblitEmma BrownErica RothmanEthan WainlandEva JacobsEvan MacedoEvan SilvermanGabriel FraivilligGabrielle GrossGraham WeberHanna ZifferHannah ZelingerHayden GoldbergHeather BravermanHenry ReinachIsabella MillerJacqueline GershmanJake StrobelJana BernardJanna SokolowJason Ryan WissnerJazzy SinkoffJeffrey MichaelsJenna Bottone

Jesse MorrisJessica GillJessica LowellJessica ReinachJessie ShapiroJoelle FriedmanJoely ZilkhaJohn BarlowJohn- Miles Jonathan LeinerJonathan RockhillJordan GoldbergJordan HabererJordan MillerJosh KrulikJoshua KahkyJulia BravermanJulia FeldmanJulia GoldenJulia RauchJulia TannenbaumJulianne MagnusJustin AlbinderJustin LewisJustine MurrayKallen CohaneKate JosephKate Kerner

Katie HallKelly MclaughlinLaura Baker Laurel AlbinderLeah BortnickLeah MiddlebergLeah PessoLinsay DalighertyLisa GrayeMadeline WeismanMaggie GreeneMarissa MyersonMarly PredMary GerenMatthew GershonMatthew PruittMaureen SteinhornMax GoldenMax LewinMax LibenMaxine SternMelanie Davis MeningaudMia LevinsonMikayla JoffeMiriam MorrisMolly MinterNaomi Natko

Natalie SingalNatalie ValloneNicholas Devito Nick O’brienNicole SharfNoah DavisOliver BrownPauline CroninPeri MargoliesPerry KernerPierre-Louis Pippa CroninRachel BeldochRachel BramRachel GershonRachel VetesiRachel WolchokRachel TannenbaumRebecca RockeRebecca ThropeRose BenderRuth LaurenceSabrina DiamondSam MarshallSamantha BescaSamantha DavisSamantha GoldbergSamantha Morris

Samantha RubensteinSamantha SchoenfeldSara HousleySarah MaySarah VetesiSasha SilvermanSawyer GarrityScott CrepeaSeth SilvermanShari BernbachSheridan DevitoSophie DavidovichStephanie LogueSteven JathasSurya GargSydney KempnerSydney KrulikSydney-Paige KaySydnie WainlandVeronica FrankZachary GershonZachary GoldsteinZelda KimbleZev ChazinZoe Hochberg

Just Registered!

September Birthdays!1 Oliver Probst Hannah Benton Rose Rutkovsky Brette Miller Eva Calvani Celia Ruskin2 Jenna Freidus Sophie Silverstein Sierra Rafter Ilana Vatkin3 Alexa Goldberg Johanna Seitenbach Anna Schaut Waldman Alec Montcomery Ruth Furman Joely Zilkha4 Noah Davis Allyson Rosenblum Will Schwartz Emma Silverman Eloise Moritz5 Jennifer Molson Rebecca Namm Mary Geren Alexander Danzi Hollan “Hadlegh” Hamm6 Corinne Fanelli Seth Leyens Amanda Lopez Jovon Faison Victoria Ungvarsky Silvia Alvarez-

Valdes Coca7 Alex Haber Elizabeth Gluck Danielle Blechman Sammy Robins Samantha Marcus Blaise Meyer8 Jessi Silverman Eric Wimer Steven Estes Patricia Martin Sophia Geisser Lily Moritz9 Shira Sterling Maia Berlow Rachel Rosen Blanca Palazuelo Kayo Kusakari Josh Freilich Brevin Parsons10 Jeffrey Michaels Cory Shanbom Shaina Lubliner Jamie Goodson Kiana Boyle James “J.J” Burgin Iv11 Alexa Grosbard Will Conard Nicole Deroux Samantha Besca Savannah Kodish Karen Maehara

Cristina Lluch12 Juliet Littwin Olivia Capella Marcel Werder Esther Vatkin Alexandria Neal Libby O’connor13 Justine Murray Lisa Graye Kaila Craw Ella Papanek Michelle Andio14 Sonia Brozak Anne Willner Rowen Altenburger Liam Longstreet Aliya Kraar Amanda Zwick15 Danielle Kaminski Jeff Lewtan Joey Varvaro Ryan Pontone Merce Jessor Fiorella Bianchi Galit Benhamu Grace Whitney Miya Nakagawa16 Peri Ganbarg Jaclyn Luskin Isabelle Phillips17 Alyssa Poland Giavanni Alves

Hannah Leibowitz Christian Fiore Emily Banks Katalina “Kate” Connors18 Maddy Rojas Calloway Cox Robyn Greenblatt19 Matthew Gershon Talia Kalter Sarah Nitowsky Alexander Heyison Sarah Frank Yuta Kito Amanda Silverstein20 Lily Grace Randall Julia Riley Lulu Adams Mackenzie Price21 Jessie Shapiro Madeline Stern Dana Papandreadis Eva Farrell Eliana Sands Janna Sokolow22 Ruthie Galker Kacie Dunham Ian Berlin Foster Hirsch Parker Hirsch Ashley Hughes Richard “Ricardo” Sullivan23 Jessie Cohen

Jason Shuwall Heather Fisch Dylan Vatkin24 Eliya Smith Morris Yang Skylar Scorch25 Sonia Copple 26 Alyxandra Magnus Shellie Deguire Bonnie Davis Kyle Bergerson Emery Mann27 Chloe Schafer Tucker Caploe Brandon Rosen Goldie Robins Fanny Brouard Henry O’keefe28 Zoe Hochberg Cameron (Cami) Cohen Heather Lewin Zivia Berkowitz Josh Kahn Natsuko Shirai29 Adelaide Meny Sarah Kopkin30 Daniel Burns Gabriele Eniclerico Thomas Guedj

THANK YOU

French Woods Festival and especially the costume shop are very grateful for all of your donations over the last few months. You have helped make the magic happen. The Costume Shop is now able to costume seventeen or more productions at a time with ease and boast a stock that would be the envy of many professional companies.

Please write, call, fax or e-mail us at the winter office with your news, stories and photos. We all look forward to hearing from you and know all your

camp friends will too!

As of September 1, 2010, there are only 281 days left until our session 1, summer of 2011. And 301 days for the start of session 2. I want to thank all of those people that made this summer as successful as it was. I loved working with Beth and look forward to spending many

years with her. She is supportive, bright, creative, and hired an incredible staff. The theatre department was an oasis of wonder - Incredible

shows, amazing talent, wonderful classes. Many thanks to Devan, as well as Elena, who with the help of all of the directors and assistants, techies and the like, ran an outstanding program. I still can’t believe that Mary Ellen is able to provide

costumes for more than eighty shows that were produced this summer as well as the one acts, film festival, and even Banquet. The sets were amazing and Mark, Brent, and Gus are

unbelievable. I can’t thank Larry enough for being Larry and running the

camp in a most efficient and effective way. He is Mr. French Woods. Our music department offered a vast array of bands,

orchestras, lessons and the like. Thanks to all the musicians, and a special thanks to Brian Worsdale, our artistic director, who made it all work. The rock department led by Mark Chapin, produced more

original music than ever before. Lessons, bands, and more were the fare for the summer. Mark and his guys provided live music for the circus, too. Mark is truly a part of the French Woods family. Ann did wonders as the head of the dance department. The

classes were enlightening, the recitals astounding, and the choreography extraordinary.And as always, circus was the place to be. Junior circus,

FireFly, and circus performances galore. We are thankful that Bronwyn was well and able to be part of another wonderful summer at the Woods. The shows were awe-inspiring, the teaching was impressive and engaging, and the atmosphere was warm and caring. All this, thanks to Mike and Bronwyn and their fantastic staff. The fine arts department, headed by Michael Knauf and

Steve Grainger, had more children go through its doors than ever before. Monica, Debby, Quinn, Thea, Andrew, etc, were outstanding. Incredible projects were produced and displayed. The boys won Sing again, but what a great Sing it was. The

closest I can remember in years. Nice job, Tony and Jane.James and Chris ran an incredible sports program. Kids

learned and grew in the more than 16 different programs offered through sports. And how about the “Mo”, that continues to grow and be a magnificent program. Did you just love the Marathon, touch rugby, and pool lacrosse.And how about that skate park? Paul, with a little help

from his friends, did a yeoman’s job incorporating art and music into the skatepark program.A thank you to Magic Larry and his crew

of outstanding magicians, who were not only great at their trade but loving and caring to the children, as well incredible teachers. All of the nurses, secretaries and doctors

worked to make it a safe and pleasant summer for all of our campers and staff. Thanks! What a beautiful new wellness

center.Cat continues to add love, excitement and fun to camp

working with the campers in theatre and stage combat. Lee continued to make our equestrian program as good as

any in the country. She brought warmth to the kids, great teaching ability, and growth and fun for all. Her staff never stopped. What a cute foal.The tennis program continues to flourish.Darren and Bernardine kept the kids swimming, sailing,

boating and waterskiing in a safe and caring environment. There are no better waterfronts in all of camping than the one at French Woods.Our cooking program, Creative Cooking, was a tremendous

hit and we hope that Betsy and Stuart can return to expand what they have started.Our kitchen staff, headed by Ryan and Carrie worked

wonders in the kitchen and dining room in order to make meals “fit for a king.” Kudos to Barbara Schaefer for her role in taking care of food services and management (and of course, taking special care of Ron). Great Banquet! Louie Slatcher, our caretaker and head of maintenance kept

this place going and going with the help of Stevie and Dave Nevin. His lovely wife Jeanne, who worked our busy French Woods front office, has been a part of our family for many years and will continue to be here for many years to come. I could not have survived the summer without our head

counselors who work 24/7 without complaint and with a love and caring that could not be found anywhere but at a place like French Woods. Thank you – Lindsay, Jill, Carolyn, Lois, Jen, Ben, Blake, Jason, Sam, and Dave. I love you all. Carolyn, you know that I couldn’t have done it without you, and thanks for Zoe, who will grow up in this special place called French Woods. Happy birthday, Blake.A special thanks to Errick for all he does, without him I also

would be lost.Did I mention Dave, well let me do it again. Dave took care

of anything and everything that needed to be done. No job was too big, too small, or too difficult. Dave has his hand and heart in so much of what makes French Woods go. BTW Dave, congratulation on your promotion from Assistant Director to Director of Creative Development. All of the heads of department will enjoy coming to you for assistance and advice.The ladies in the office went beyond the call of duty. Shaun,

Jeanne, Laura, Donna, Marta, Sandra, Caroline, et. al. made both mine and Errick’s lives a little easier. Thanks to Scott for his contributions to the French Woods

family. Scott was always there to support us and help us.Thanks to Ryan Arey for the over 136 activities he “shot”

and for the over 2000 DVDs we will be sending out. His film festivals attracted standing room only crowds. I just love video postcards.The program office, ran smoother than ever as Rose,

Dave, and Enid made sure the kids all got what they needed and kept the camp organized. A special thank you to Enid for always going beyond the call of duty and lending her knowledge and expertise to all we do at French Woods.I would like to doubly thank my Rose for always being there

for me and making my life easier and more fulfilled.And what about the most wonderful kids in the world that

happen to be here at French Woods. What a summer they gave me. This was my best summer in 30 years and I look forward to another 30 years at the Woods.You know, I really never thank Ron for all he does; because

out of his head jumped this incredibly wonderful concept call French Woods Festival and he has never looked back. He has changed the lives of youngsters for generations and generations. His modesty is only exceeded by his creativity and his kindness. Thank you, Ron.

2010 Highlights

Isaac’s Corner

The 2011 Show ListSession 1

Pete’s Dragon LowerReally Rosie LowerSnow White LowerBig MiddleBells are Ringing MiddleFiddler on the Roof MiddleLa Cage Aux Folles UpperUrinetown UpperRagtime UpperThe Effect of Gamma Rays on Man-in-the-Moon Marigolds UpperPicnic Upper

Session 2Mulan LowerJames an the Giant Peach LowerHow to Eat Like a Child LowerRobin Hood LowerFinding Nemo LowerMamma Mia MiddleRedhead MiddleSpelling Bee MiddleSinging in the Rain MiddleMe and My Girl MiddleMan of La Mancha UpperParade UpperCurtains UpperSunset Blvd UpperPrelude to a Kiss UpperBlithe Spirit UpperDracula Upper

Session 3Guys and Dolls Jr LowerMary Poppins LowerFantastic Mr Fox LowerPeter Pan LowerCinderella LowerHonk MiddleA Connecticut Yankee MiddleAnnie Get Your Gun MiddlePirates of Penzance MiddleNext to Normal UpperMy Favorite Year UpperSpamalot UpperMack & Mabel UpperA Flea in Her Ear Upper10 Little Indians UpperBlack Comedy Upper

Session 4Alice in Wonderland Jr LowerBeauty and the Beast Jr LowerHercules LowerSleeping Beauty LowerDamn Yankees MiddleChildren of Eden MiddleLittle Me MiddleTwo by Two MiddleCrazy For You UpperLegally Blonde UpperSide Show UpperAs You Like it UpperPlaying For Time UpperThe Odd Couple Upper

CircusThank you to everybody involved in making Circus 2010 such a fantas-tic success. With the introduction of Fire-Fly & the Junior Circus and our 4 fabulous shows in the circus pavillion, it just gets better and bet-ter. A special acknowledgement to the rock shop for providing the soundtrack for the summer, and of course, all the campers who made circus such a memorable experi-ence for all of us.

DanceIt was great to share the love of dance with the many campers at French Woods! See you all next summer!

MusicWhat a terrific summer we had in the music program. For the first time that our new first session was introduced, we fielded a full symphonic band, jazz band and orchestra! Our concerts were abun-dant and highly successful. With visits and appearances by names

like Laurel Zucker, Jeffrey Grogan, Peter Martin, Frank Lacey and Salim Washington, our students received some great instruction and advice. Kudos to the music staff and administration. I have been proud to continue to work at this place my home away from home. Lets keep looking for those positive life changing experiences that make French Woods the vanguard in the performing arts camp world.

MagicMagic at French Woods has never been bigger - Bring on next year! These kids all have magic inside them and the magic department lets them show us what they can do. Magic beyond belief - Thanks for a fantastic summer!

HorsebackThree cheers for an excellent horseback riding season and our horseback riding exhibitions! We happily ride off into the sunset, but we will see you next year!

KitchenThe kitchen and dining room staff had such a great summer this year! We certainly worked hard... but knowing how much everyone enjoyed the meals certainly makes it all worth while.

TheaterTwo Thousand and Zen was a won-derful year for Theatre. We had 67 fully produced shows, a wonderful staff and a fantastic group of camp-ers. This summer was special because we produced 7 brand new, never been done shows; three of them we partnered with Disney to mount. We added a Stock Drama, “Is He Dead” and in addition to the 7 new shows we did an additional 11 shows that were a first for French Woods.We are already busy planning for 2011 and can’t wait to share with you what we will be doing. See you all at camp in June.

Head CounselorsWhat an amazing time in Twenty Zen! Incredible memories, songs, dances, laughs, good times and great weather! All the brilliant new activities were a hit! Touch rugby, the JR circus, mediation and relax-ation, pool lacrosse and many great others. The new wellness center made everyone feel right at home! As I am sure you will miss us waking you up each morning and saying good night before bed, we hope you have a wonderful school year. On behalf of Lyndsay, Lois, Jilly, Jen, Carolyn, Ben, Sam, Jason, Blake (Happy Birthday!) and Dave. We will miss each and every one of you and we look forward to another fun, crazy, fantastic sum-mer together.

Fine ArtsVisual Arts had a great summer, thanks to all the staff for working so hard. Pop-Ups were a hit and we’ve got exciting plans for next year, so stay tuned!

WaterfrontWhat a great summer Great to meet all the new faces and fantastic to see all the returning campers. I hope to see everyone down at the waterfront again next summer!

Video86 Films. 237 Video Postcards. 140 Performance DVDs. The best End of Summer Video we’ve ever made (the video will be available to download on frenchwoods.com). All of these accomplishments could not have been made without our Video Crew: Ryan, Tim, Veg, Matt, Natalie, Rachael, Sindy, Austin, and Glenn...plus our CITs Noah, Chris, Dylan, Phill, Perry and Michael. Several films from this season will make their way into professional film festivals. Check the Performer for updates. Thanks for a great summer.

RopesIt’s been an amazing summer! The rock wall has been a place where good friends have been made,

limits have been pushed and fears have been conquered. I would like to thank, everyone for their involve-ment in Project Adventure and hope to see everyone next summer.

SportsThe Sports department enjoyed a great summer, we were competitive in many of our intercamp games and had sun everyday!

Rock ShopRock Shop was able to provide more opportunities for campers of all levels to perform by expanding our existing program as well as finding ways to perform with other departments. We added extra can-teen shows, worked with the Vocal Ensembles, and shook the foun-dations of Circus with 4000 watts and a bad attitude! Next year Rock Shop hopes to work with even more departments, creating more oppor-tunities for campers to perform, and continue to improve Rock Shop classes by making them even more fun, and more informative.