Some of my fondest memories of Delaware Valley Central School are of the musicals that we put on under the direction of music teacher extraordinaire Willard Slausenberg.  I just loved those “musical extravaganzas”, as our Social Studies teacher Bertha Reddy called them.  Come ninth period, about two-thirds of each homeroom in the junior high and high school would empty and go down to the gym where our rehearsals were held.

We spent hours that lasted into the evenings as we sang our hearts out, practiced our dances and watched our classmates take the stage.  We were cowhands and farmers (Oklahoma!), attendees at  the Ascot Races (My Fair Lady), wives of the King of Siam (The King and I), children in a workhouse (Oliver!), millworkers on a June clambake (Carousel), and sailors and nurses on an island in the Pacific (South Pacific).

What wonderful times we had!  I still know (most) of the words to all of the songs in those shows. I discovered this when I watched the Jimmy Awards Show 2025, which streamed live on YouTube this week and is now available to watch there. 

The Jimmy Awards are the National High School Musical Theatre Awards and showcase the talents of outstanding performers from all over the country. The winners of the regional competitions travel to New York City for a week of excitement, working with choreographers, coaches, and musical directors to create the Jimmy Awards show, a three-hour extravaganza that is truly magical.

My grandniece Peyton Finch is the reason I know anything about the Jimmy Awards. Peyton recently graduated as Valedictorian at Howard W. Blake High School, a magnet school for the performing arts in Tampa, FL. Peyton starred as Little Sally in Blake’s superlative production of Urinetown and she was fabulous! We flew down to see her performance and we’re so glad we did! Her classmate Jayden Vega played lead Bobby Strong and he was wonderful.  Long story short: Jayden won the regional competition  in Tampa and went to the Jimmys in NYC this past week.

Not only did Jayden get to learn from the best and perform on a Broadway stage, he also won a $2500 award there for Best Ensemble performance.  What a thrill for him and his  friends at Blake!

I knew nothing about the Jimmys before this, but watching those kids give it their all at the Jimmys gave me the chills.  Seeing such talent and energy really gives one hope for our future.  If you get a chance, watch the Jimmy Awards online.  Treat yourself to something wonderful.

I’m grateful that we put on annual musicals at DVCS.  Those experiences taught us cooperation, how to take risks, and stretched our creative muscles. They made our lives richer and more meaningful all these years later.  Keep singing and dancing, kids!