Zip zap zop was the name of the game students played with Broadway actor Gilgamesh Taggett during an acting technique workshop taught at Lansdowne High School on Wednesday.
"The single most important thing about being an actor is timing," Taggett said to the group of students who stood around him in a circle. "This is about speed; this is about accuracy."
Nearly 100 students sharpened their theater performance skills on Wednesday afternoon by learning from Broadway performers who traveled to Baltimore City's Hippodrome Theatre with the musical Annie.
The Lansdowne middle and high school performing arts students rotated through a series of three afternoon workshops, taught in dance, acting technique and vocals by three performers from the show.
The workshops were provided free to the school, located in the southwest corner of Baltimore County, by the Hippodrome Foundation, a nonprofit organization that provides education and outreach opportunities with the theater located on West Baltimore Street.
Lansdowne High partnered with the organization four years ago to improve performing arts opportunities for their students, said Barb Wirsing, education director for the organization.
"We always like to give them these experiences because a lot of them don't have the opportunity to get outside of their neighborhood," Wirsing said.
Last year, the organization also began offering programs at Lansdowne Middle.
"Our hope is that by involving the middle school, they are now going to funnel kids to the high school, and we're going to see growth," said Rob Tracy, a third year vocal music teacher at the high school.
During the workshop, the 20 middle school students were paired up with a mentor from the high school, in order to make the students feel more comfortable.
"Coming with all the high schoolers is probably really overwhelming," said Roxanne Cole, 17, a senior at Lansdowne High who mentored a middle school student.
Martin Mendez, a seventh grader at Lansdowne Middle, who was partnered with senior Jalyll Colter, found someone to look up to.
"He's a really cool guy," said Mendez, who looked to Colter while learning the dance routine. "He knows all the steps."
The students danced on stage in the auditorium at Lansdowne High under the direction of Evan Mayer, dance captain for the musical who makes his debut on Broadway with the show that has taveled across the nation.
"It's great seeing young, moldable minds who are passionate about theater," Mayer said while taking a brief break in between workshops.
Wirsing said the workshop was designed to give students a taste of what it is like being a professional performer.
"A lot of kids have dreams of pursuing careers as a Broadway star. We want them to see what it's like to be a professional performer," Wirsing said, adding that students learn life skills through the workshops, too.
Tracy agreed that the performing arts provides students life skills, while also positively impacting their academic performance.
"Being involved in the performing arts…is something that gives students a cultural perspective, " Tracy said. "It helps them have a better understanding of the world around them and themselves and that does translate academically."
Manyae Kerney, 15, a sophomore at Lansdowne High, who attends the school's dance magnet program, said she learned listening skills during the acting workshop taught by Taggett, who plays Oliver Warbucks in the musical.
Kerney, who wants to become a psychiatrist, said being a performer gives you a "well-rounded foundation if you want to go onto something like the sciences."
"It helps you to expand your personality and be able to work with different types of people in different arenas," Kerney said.
Tracy said students are also more likely to attend school when they are involved in the arts.
"One of the big goals of the Hippodrome is to promote the arts and its inherent value in the community," Tracy said. "And one of our goals is to bolster interest and growth because... the arts is a catalyst for kids to be in school and be highly motivated about what they are doing in school."
The workshops began at noon and ended at 2 p.m. with a question and answer session with the three performers Mayer, Taggett and Cameron Mitchell Bell. The students will watch the musical on Thursday.