THE BEAR FACTS
January 22, 2022

 Good morning! I’m Ava Eisenbarth!

 I’m Riley Rosenmeyer!

 And I’m Marguerite Fakler! You’re listening to the “Bear Facts”, the weekly radio show from Bishop Garrigan High School.

 Today almost two dozen Garrigan students are down in Manson for the Iowa High School Speech Association district large group contest. The Bears have five different events competing today. Students have been preparing since early December, and they’re hoping things will go well at contest today.
 

 The first group competed in Group Improvisation about half an hour ago. The improv group featured Mya Kemna, Meredith Tigges, Benjy Trainer, Audi Crooks, and Violet Bode. Then at 9:30 the Readers Theatre Uncool will perform. That group includes Violet Bode, Scott Bormann, Katelyn Cink, Audi Crooks, Ella Schaaf, Thadd Kollasch, Molly Peterson, Ella Muller, and Isabel Casey. The show uses both humor and drama to tell about the problems kids have fitting in at school.

 Right after lunch Garrigan will compete with their One-Act Play. The show is called Bedtime Stories (As Told by Our Dad – Who Messed Them Up), and that title pretty much tells what the play is about. Garrett Heying plays the dad; and Meredith Tigges, Riley Rosenmeyer, and Brendan Plathe are the kids.

 The story they tell is “The Princess and the Pea”. Ava Eisenbarth is the maid who becomes a princess, Isaac DeLange is the prince, Marguerite Fakler is the queen, and Mya Kemna plays the prime minister. There’s even a special guest appearance by trombonist Benjy Trainer.

 At 2pm Choral Reading will perform. They’re doing Dr. Seuss’ very first story, And to Think That I Saw It on Mulberry Street. The cast includes Veronica and Maryanne Capesius, Annie Burns, Ella Muller, Isabel Casey, Meredith Illg, Brendan Plathe, and Scott Bormann. Finally there’s the Ensemble Acting selection We Need a Man, which features Riley Rosenmeyer, Marguerite Fakler, Meredith Illg, and Ava Eisenbarth trying to find a play that will work with an all-female cast.

 At district speech contest, Bishop Garrigan will compete against groups representing schools from all over north central Iowa. If they earn a Division I rating, they’ll advance to state, which will be held February 5 in Spencer. Best wishes to Coach David Burrow and everyone involved in large-group speech. Break a leg, everybody!

 Some Garrigan students also showed off their dramatic talent last weekend. They were part of the community show from All-Call Productions called Jack and Bella. BGHS students involved in the show were Joey Doerning, Izzy Waechter, and Griffin Geving. They were joined by younger Garrigan students Shilo Trainer, Madelyn Tigges, Gabriella Buscher, Carter Kollasch, Alfred Harren, and Lucy Geving. Congratulations to everyone on a great show!

 Garrigan’s jazz choir has been working hard through the winter to prepare for competition. Their first contest will be next Thursday at Iowa Lakes in Estherville. Students in jazz choir are sopranos Ella Muller, Meredith Tigges, Savannah Waechter Ava Eisenbarth, and Eva Snyder; and altos Marguerite Fakler, Violet Bode, Audi Crooks, Isabel Casey, and Maggie Vaske.

 Boys in jazz choir include tenors Benjy Trainer, Brendan Plathe, Nate Bronk, and Hollis Bode; plus bass vocalists Xander Darling, Drew Casey, Sam Plathe, and Logan Nemmers. Antonia Rupert is the choir director at Garrigan. Good luck to the jazz choir in their first competition next Thursday!

 Our Senior Spotlight this week shines on Maryanne Capesius. Here to tell you about her is Xander Darliong.

 Today is a special day for Maryanne Capesius, as both she and her twin sister are celebrating their eighteenth birthday. Maryanne has been in speech all through high school, and today she’s competing as part of Garrigan’s choral reading. Her other activities include volleyball, track, and the stage crew for plays and musicals. Away from school she works in daycare. She’ll be a college girl next year, and we wish Maryanne all the best in the future.

 Thanks, Xander. On our Golden Bear calendar this week, there’s district large-group speech contest today at Manson. Then Monday the JJV boys basketball team will be hosting Garner Hayfield Ventura.

 Tuesday we’ll start the day with a student mass. That night the JV boys and the varsity girls and boys will be playing over at Garner.

 Next Thursday the jazz choir has a competition at Iowa Lakes in Estherville. Also that night there’s JJV basketball with North Union in Armstrong.

 Finally next Friday there’s a basketball quad, with the Bears hosting North Union. It will be law enforcement night, when we honor local officers at the games.

 That’s the “Bear Facts” for this week. Thanks for tuning in, and be sure to catch the show next week when we’ll tell you all about Catholic Schools Week here at Bishop Garrigan High School.