Carly Tovell ’13
Music blares in every classroom throughout the school, students sit in their seats glued to the TV, and the WARL studio door is locked: It must be Friday during extended third period, because Kickin’ It Live, the school’s weekly live broadcast show, is airing throughout the school.
Students like sophomore Laramie Abbruzzese look forward to a new episode of Kickin’ It Live each week.
“The show makes Fridays fun,” Abruzzesse said. “It’s nice to see what’s going on in the school.”
As the 2010-11 school year begins to wind down, some fans of the show are wondering: Who will fill the spots on next year’s Kickin’ It Live staff?
Each spring, students from the Broadcast Production course apply for positions on the following year’s Kickin’ It Live staff. The 13 juniors in this year’s Broadcast Production class have been producing broadcast segments for the UA public access show, UA Live, throughout their semester in the class. During the Kickin’ It application process, the current staff will interview the applicants and go over their broadcast segments. Current Broadcast Production junior Lily Rhodehammel said she hopes to be a part of Kickin’ It Live next year.
“I think it would be fun to be a reporter next year, because in Broadcast Production you make similar packages,” Rhodehammel said. “Being an anchor would be fun, too.”
As the school year progresses, the Kickin’ It Live show has become more cohesive, correcting issues from prior shows and appealing to a larger variety of students. Senior Audrey Denehy, a Kickin’ It Live reporter, said it takes a lot of effort to make these changes.
And the current Kickin’ It students are not the only ones planning improvements for the show. Along with a new group of students, the 2011-12 Kickin’ It Live staff plans to bring new ideas and changes to the broadcast. Junior Maggie Morrison said the group plans to broaden students’ interest in the show.
“We hope to continue the show in a responsible way, but we want to take on more controversial topics,” Morrison said. “The group this year is doing a good job; we just hope to make the show funny and enjoyable to watch. We don’t want anyone dreading to watch the show.”
The staff for 2011-12 is unofficial, but the Kickin’ It Live show has a bright future, with new students and new ideas for the program. •