![“[Building nerf blasters] became this outlet of creativity for me that hasn't been matched by anything else. The process [of] making a build complete to your desire is such a painstakingly difficult process, but I've had to learn from [the skills needed from] soldering to proper painting. There's so many different options for everything, if you think about it, it exists. The best part is [that] if it doesn't exist, you can build it yourself," Ishaan Parate said.](https://harkeraquila.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/DSC_8149-900x604.jpg)
![“When I came into high school, I was ready to be a follower. But DECA was a game changer for me. It helped me overcome my fear of public speaking, and it's played such a major role in who I've become today. To be able to successfully lead a chapter of 150 students, an officer team and be one of the upperclassmen I once really admired is something I'm [really] proud of,” Anvitha Tummala ('21) said.](https://harkeraquila.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/07/Screen-Shot-2021-07-25-at-9.50.05-AM-900x594.png)
![“I think getting up in the morning and having a sense of purpose [is exciting]. I think without a certain amount of drive, life is kind of obsolete and mundane, and I think having that every single day is what makes each day unique and kind of makes life exciting,” Neymika Jain (12) said.](https://harkeraquila.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/06/Screen-Shot-2017-06-03-at-4.54.16-PM.png)
![“My slogan is ‘slow feet, don’t eat, and I’m hungry.’ You need to run fast to get where you are–you aren't going to get those championships if you aren't fast,” Angel Cervantes (12) said. “I want to do well in school on my tests and in track and win championships for my team. I live by that, [and] I can do that anywhere: in the classroom or on the field.”](https://harkeraquila.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/06/DSC5146-900x601.jpg)
![“[Volleyball has] taught me how to fall correctly, and another thing it taught is that you don’t have to be the best at something to be good at it. If you just hit the ball in a smart way, then it still scores points and you’re good at it. You could be a background player and still make a much bigger impact on the team than you would think,” Anya Gert (’20) said.](https://harkeraquila.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/06/AnnaGert_JinTuan_HoHPhotoEdited-600x900.jpeg)
![“I'm not nearly there yet, but [my confidence has] definitely been getting better since I was pretty shy and timid coming into Harker my freshman year. I know that there's a lot of people that are really confident in what they do, and I really admire them. Everyone's so driven and that has really pushed me to kind of try to find my own place in high school and be more confident,” Alyssa Huang (’20) said.](https://harkeraquila.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/06/AlyssaHuang_EmilyChen_HoHPhoto-900x749.jpeg)
SDS staged readings to be held before auditions in October
Janet Lee ’16, a student director of one of last year’s SDS shows, rehearses lines with Chetana Kalidindi (12), one of this year’s student directors. Staged readings will be held before auditions take place during the first week of October.
September 12, 2016
The four Student Directed Showcase (SDS) directors will be holding staged readings of their plays in Patil 52 on Sept. 27 and Sept. 29 from 12:30 p.m. to 1:20 p.m.
Seniors Sana Aladin, Emre Ezer, Chetana Kalidindi and Kayvon Solaimanpour will be directing The Importance of Being Ernest, Removing the Glove, Grover and Dystopia! respectively.
“[Staged readings are] so helpful, especially for the actors.” Chetana said. “You kind of get a feel for all the plays and get really excited about all of them.”
During the reading, each play will be recited all the way through. Students will be able to choose of a few monologues from the plays to recite while auditioning, so these readings provide an opportunity to understand the plot and tone of each play before choosing how to perform in the audition.
Auditions will be held between Oct. 3 and Oct. 7, in Patil 52.
“All of us are doing comedies, so we just really want people who are enthusiastic and not afraid to take a few risks,” Sana said. “Just really friendly, nice people mostly.”
At the reading, the directors can also address students’ questions about the time commitment, auditioning process and any other concerns.
