Chugiak World Discovery Seminar Program

WDS Parents and families! The Come From Away and Hamilton field trips were fantastic!

Since SIX: The Musical has less in-classroom connections for the curriculum plans that our students are studying this year, we’d like to try doing an evening show instead of a traditional during-the-school-day field trip. We are hoping this style of trip:

A) reduces the amount of class students are missing, since there are already a lot of disruptions in the month of February

B) allows parents with 9-5 jobs the chance to “chaperone” a field trip

C) allows our students to have a night downtown at the museum, mall, and theater and practice the fun parts of adulthood– exploring culture with friends and not for a grade.

D) help families access a group rate for a show that they wouldn’t otherwise get to see at the premium price.

The total cost will be $65 a person, and includes your show ticket, museum entry, a box lunch from Bean’s Cafe (an awesome program to support), and some time at the 5th Avenue Mall between the museum and the show.

The event will be Tuesday, February 20th. We are likely to leave from Chugiak about 4:45 pm and return about 10pm.

FAQ’s
Can parents come? YES! We want as many parents/guardians/grandparents as possible to come. You do not have to come in order to send your WDS student, though.

Can we drive to Anchorage and meet you there? Yes and no. Parents/guardians can drive themselves and/or their students and meet us at the museum. Students cannot drive themselves there, even if they have permission from their parent. Students can ride the bus even if their parent wants to drive themselves.

Can non-WDS students go? YES. WDS students can bring siblings, friends, and dates as long as they are Chugiak students and complete the field trip form.

Can non-Chugiak students go? YES, if a parent or guardian is chaperoning and the student is mature enough to sit through the show. See below for content warnings.

What is this musical about? SIX: The musical is basically a 80 minute rock concert told from the perspective of Henry VIII’s wives. The music is super modern and the costuming is modern/tudor mix. There’s a lot of fishnets and glitter. The cast is all-female. The show is historically inspired but not concerned with being 100% historically accurate.

For Come From Away, all 10th-12th grade students had to annotate some articles and then seminared on the musical in Ms. Handeland’s class. Will there be any assignments related to this in my students class? Nope. Not this time. I (Ms. Handeland) will offer an extra credit response for students who can share what they thought of the play, what they learned at the museum, and give feedback on the event, but no one will be required to do anything academic related to this event.

Is this show appropriate for a school field trip? Yes, but…
This show has less language than Come From Away (which featured two f-bombs) but probably more sexual content, since it is about a guy who was married six times and usually was dating the next wife before the previous wife was divorced/beheaded/dead from child birth. The show is generally rated 10 and up. I think there is one explicit reference to oral sex in Anne Boleyn’s song– she makes a double entendre about her own beheading, stating “I guess he really liked my head” with some generous pantomiming. Folks who were not scandalized by the adultery story line in Hamilton or the airplane song in Come From Away probably won’t have any issue with this musical.

For more info on the show’s content, you can check out some reviews here:
https://www.latimes.com/entertainment-arts/story/2023-05-14/review-six-arrives-at-the-pantages

https://lovedwellshere.com/seeing-six-on-broadway-with-kids/

https://www.broadwayinbound.com/shows/six/group-tickets

What if I want to learn more about the musical or do a family seminar on this musical? There is a pretty fantastic teacher resource guide available from the PAC that I will probably print some copies of for kids who are interested. It has some great questions that could be adapted for a family seminar. If you want to check it out, you can do so here: https://sixonbroadway.com/_img/SIX-Broadway-Teacher-Resource-Guide.pdf

Can I pay for another student’s ticket? Yup. We will have payment for the field trip set up on parent connect for $65. If you want to donate an extra ticket for a student in need, you can send $65 via check to the school. Please make it payable to Chugiak WDS.

I want my student to go, but we don’t have the funds. A scholarship application will be available in Ms. Handeland’s room starting January 16th. Please have your student pick one up and fill out the questions on a separate sheet of paper or on a google doc and submit it ASAP. Students will be notified as funds become available.

I still have questions. Okay! Email handeland_mackenna@asdk12.org, or better yet, have your student practice self-advocacy and ask them to come find me at lunch or after class to get clarification.

When are permission slips due?

Slips went out on 1/29 and are due back on Wednesday, February 7th by 2pm. Please pay online through ParentConnect or send a check payable to Chugiak WDS.