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A Piece of Broadway Visits Huntington

Two Broadway actors recently visited J. Taylor Finley Middle School and gave members of the chorus there plenty to remember.

Huntington parent and talent agent Jana Breitbarth arranged the visit to Finley by actors Phillip James (P.J.) Griffith and Kelly Ann Karbacz. The pair spent time with teacher Josie Rosado's chorus students.

Mr. Griffith performed the piece "Boulevard of Broken Dreams," from American Idiot and Ms. Karbacz performed "Take Me or Leave Me," from RENT. They performed a duet as their grand finale "As Long as You're Mine," from Wicked. P.J. Griffith and Kelly Karbacz met on the production of But I'm a Cheerleader and married in 2007. Prior to each piece the actors introduced their song and gave a brief synopsis of the show.

"It was wonderful to have such a unique opportunity to meet the people we see on stage, TV and the movies," Ms. Rosado said. "Students were listening with great care and showed tremendous interest when it came time to ask questions. P.J. and Kelly inspired students with their voices and gave them hope to pursue their dreams in their motivational responses. I loved the way P.J. and Kelly said 'Don't be scared to do what you want to do. If it makes you happy do it!' They inspired me to keep on dancing even though they talked about acting and singing."

Mr. Griffith was born and raised in South Windsor, Connecticut. He graduated from New York University's Tisch School of the Arts in 2002. He has guest starred on television episodes of Days of our Lives and House and played the part of a sniper in The Dark Knight. The actor has also starred in the Broadway musicals American Idiot and Giant, First National Tour's production of Mamma Mia, and Musical Theater West's production of RENT.

Ms. Karbacz was born in Queens, New York. She graduated from the prestigious Stuyvesant High School in New York City and later attended NYU's Tisch School of the Arts. She has guest starred on the television episodes of Law and Order: SVU and Criminal Intent, five episodes of Regular Joe and movies The Tale of Two Pizzas and Get Smart. Her musical performances include the off-Broadway production of The Sound of Music as Louisa, the Broadway production of RENT as Maureen and the New York Musical Theater Festival production of But I'm a Cheerleader.

After the performance, Finley students participated in a question and answer session with the actors. Eighth grader Aurelia Medina, had the opportunity to perform a self-composed piece for the performers.

"Students inquired about the dreams each actor had to pursue their careers from an early age, the hundreds of auditions and interviews needed for their profession, challenges they have faced and what they love most about their jobs," Ms. Rosado said

"My experience with P.J. and Kelly was great," said Cody Bograd, a Finley eighth grader. "They deserve to be on Broadway. It's great they spent time with us."

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