Sometimes, Franklin High students have more talent than what their school friends see. This summer four Franklin High students will be touring Europe for three and a half weeks as they perform for audiences that mass at over a thousand.
Franklin High senior Matt Duhamel, and juniors Meghan Dean, Galen Hancock, and Kerryn Reeve don’t only have to worry about taking finals the last week of school, but also last minute packing and rehearsals before they depart.
After a day of finals, the four will set out with the group Electric Youth that includes eighteen students from the surrounding towns of Hopkinton, Medway, Mansfield, Millville, Wrentham, North Attleboro, and, of course, Franklin. All members of Electric Youth have journeyed through a selective audition process back in September, and have since then been preparing for their European Tour. The group combines singing and dancing to music styles ranging from Broadway, 80’s rock, country, and current favorites. As hard as it may be, don’t think glee. The group is professional and is backed by an eight-piece rhythm and horn section that includes well renowned Boston professionals.
For Matt and Kerryn, they embark on the tour for the first time, and as for Meghan and Galen it will be their second.
Already this season, in preparation for the European audiences, Electric Youth has had major performances at the Time Square Arts Center in New York, Showcase Live in Foxboro, and Mechanics Hall in Worchester.
But now it is crunch time for the performers.
The tour kicks off June 18, 2010 as Electric Youth departs for their first stop, Vienna, Austria. In Vienna, aside from the occasional sightseeing, Electric Youth will have five shows between June 20th and 26th. The venues range from larger outdoor venues in Danube Park, Vienna, to fancier indoor benefit concerts to raise money for programs that teach students with special needs.
From here Electric Youth hops on their tour bus filled with staff, band, and entourage, and heads off to a quick stop in Slovenia only for a large concert venue in Porotoroz.
Six shows done, the group is only half way through their tour. The last stop, but definitely the favorite stop, is Italy. In Italy the audiences are bigger, louder, and crazier—exactly the energy the 18 performers need to keep them going through the two-hour shows. From July 3rd to the 9th, the group hits the beach, hits the shops, oh—and performs. The concerts in Italy are out in the open airs in town centers and along the beach after the sun goes down. Bibione and Lingano are memorable to stopping traffic and attaining around 3,000 viewers.
The trip also has some sentimental and American fellowship as the group performs at Aviano Air Force Base in Italy on the 4th of July. Electric Youth brings some American favorites and a little bit of patriotic music to the soldiers who have been stationed overseas during their nation’s celebration.
The tour reaches its end on July 10th as the group, along with Matt, Meghan, Galen, and Kerryn, head home to Franklin. These four who seem to be just typical FHSer’s will and have gained an experience of a lifetime. So you just never know what’s happening in Franklin.
But I’d have to say Franklin’s Got Talent.