Concerns Subside As School Trip Nears.
By Carolyn Rusin. Special to the Tribune. Chicago Tribune. May 17, 2000
BARRINGTON -- Students from the Barrington High School Choir are heading to Cuba on Thursday to participate in the first International Choral Festival De Cuba, a trip that initially caused some concerns among parents.
"What really fouled us up was this Elian [Gonzalez] thing," said choral director Nancy Kozel-Tobison, referring to the international custody case involving the shipwrecked Cuban boy. "It caused all kinds of people being afraid to send their kids. It affected a number of parents,
particularly parents of girls. They thought it would be dangerous."
But after traveling to Cuba in February with other choral directors to experience the culture firsthand, Kozel-Tobison said any doubts she might have had about the choral trip were erased.
"I had said that if this is going to be like being behind the Iron Curtain, we are not going," Kozel-Tobison said. "But it was fabulous. I've been to the hotel we're staying at. I've seen the basilica where the concert is. I've been to the restaurants we're going to. ... I didn't
want to look all these parents in the eye and say, `I can guarantee you this is going to be a wonderful experience,' if I couldn't guarantee it."
Joining the 32 choral students for their five-day trip will be a group of 30 parents and high school teachers, including Spanish teacher Patricia Meloy.
"I really don't know what to expect," said Meloy, one of three Spanish teachers participating in the trip. "There are so many stereotypes about Cuba. A lot of people misunderstand the embargo, the Cuban revolution. I want to get a better feel about Cuban life. I want to talk to
people in the streets.
"It's a lesson-building trip for me. If I can incorporate anything into my curriculum development, I will. Maybe I'll teach my kids some Latin dancing."
Said history teacher Paul Eisenbacher: "It's a great opportunity to have the kids see Cuba, a place that has been taboo for many years. I tell my students, `You leave yourself open to all things and later you'll make sense of it."'
The choir is one of only three high school choirs representing the United States that will join choirs from other countries, including three from Cuba.
Students will stay in the Hotel Nacional in Havana, where on the night of their arrival they will join eight other choirs from around the world on the lawn for the festival's opening ceremony.
For high school senior Scott Viohl, the decision to join his fellow choir members on the trip was a little tough to make. Today, however, he is eagerly awaiting the trip and looking forward to celebrating his 18th birthday Friday by "smoking a big, fat Cuban cigar."
"When I first heard about it, I was kind of apprehensive to go. I was kind of freaked out about the whole Elian thing. I was afraid the people wouldn't like us," Viohl said. "Also, it's my senior prom this week-end.
"But after Mrs. Kozel went and told us how nice and warm the people are, I decided to finally go."
Plus, he said, "I realized it's a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to see Cuba under Castro's rule."
But for Viohl's twin sister, Amanda, who is also a choir member, the decision whether to go to Cuba or Saturday's prom was a snap.
"I've been waiting for my prom. My boyfriend and I wanted to experience our senior prom together. I'm really pumped for it," she said.
Still, she is excited for her brother. "It is really a once-in-a-lifetime thing, having all those people you get to sing with that there's no way you would get a chance to sing with otherwise."
On Sunday, students will participate in the International Choral Festival Series, to be held in the 16th Century Basilica de La Habana. The choir will deliver an individual performance, as well as sing with more than 400 other choralists for the closing piece, Beethoven's Ninth Symphony.
"I have told my students they need to be on exemplary behavior," Kozel-Tobison said. "They are not just representing our country; they are representing American youth." |