Academic Boosters Host Third Annual Springfield Sprint
Lace up those racing shoes – or sign on the dotted line. Springfield High School Academic Boosters club is hosting the third annual Springfield Sprint on Sunday, October 2 at 9:00 a.m.
The 5K run/family walk begins at Strawberry Acres Park on Clarion Avenue and winds through the quiet neighborhood streets of Holland to Springfield High School and back to the park.
Awards will be given for overall male and female, as well as three deep in each of 13 age groups.
SHS Academic Boosters is a parent organization formed to recognize the academic achievements of students.
To be successful, the 5K run/walk depends on pledges from walkers and runners as well as sponsorships from area businesses and organizations.
The entry fee is $15.00 for adults and $10.00 for students in kindergarten through 12th grade if registration is postmarked by Friday, September 9. After September 9 and on race day the fee will be $20.00 for adults and $15.00 for students. The fee is $5.00 for a T-shirt only.
Teams of five or more can register for $15.00 each.
For more information, visit www.springfieldsprint.org or contact Cindy Siedler at (419) 215-4369 or Cathy Quinto at (419) 351-5345.

Springfield Graduate Signs To Perform In Cats Tour
BY KAREN BERGER — MIRROR REPORTER
Give Melissa Grochowski 15 minutes and she’ll give you Jennyanydots, Jelly-lorum or Grizabella – or several other characters from the musical Cats.
As the 2004 Springfield High School graduate toured with the Broadway production of Cats as a vocal swing last year, she had to apply her own makeup and costume within 15 minutes to get on the stage to fill in for performers.
“It happens more than you think,” she said. “But I didn’t have time to get nervous.”
This year, she’s been signed to tour in the role of Jellylorum.
Melissa – who dropped the “c” in Grochowski for professional purposes when she got a New York agent – visited her alma mater on August 30 to talk theater, auditions and life on the road with a group of juniors and seniors.
The daughter of Tom and Michelle Grochowski, Melissa recalled her first experience on stage as Gretl in The Sound of Music at Holland Elementary. She lamented the loss of a drama program at Springfield Middle School, where she continued to perform. And in high school, the juniors and seniors hated her because even as a freshman she always got the lead, she said.
“We did a lot of great shows. My freshman year there was a levy that we were worried wouldn’t pass and our arts would be taken away,” Melissa said, motioning around the auditorium. “This helps so much with creativity. It’s so important.”
“We were lucky to have her for a few years,” said Chris Henke, SHS music teacher who connected with Melissa on Facebook and invited her to visit.
“I love coming back,” Melissa said. “I want to stay with my roots.”
After leaving Springfield, Melissa continued performing while earning her degree in fine arts from Wright State University. Every summer, she sang, danced and acted at Cedar Point. While agents turn their noses up at amusement park experience, those summers helped her build up stamina and grow, she said.
“When I was in high school, I sang from here,” she said, pointing to her lungs and throat. “Now I sing from my diaphragm, and when I’m done my stomach and back will actually hurt. It took a lot of training. You also have to learn how to sell the song.”
After graduating from Wright State, she moved with two friends to New York City, got an agent and auditioned. Within a week she booked her first show off-Broadway – which doesn’t usually happen that fast.
As Henke played the piano, Melissa sang 16 bars of “Come to Your Senses.”
“When you audition, never sing ‘Memories’ from Cats. Don’t sing a song that everyone knows,” she said.
Her go-to piece is “Gorgeous” from The Apple Tree but she also performed “Falling” from Smokey Joe’s Café.
Pointing to a stack of music, she explained that she has several songs she can perform to adjust to the feel.
But when going to an audition, she might wait eight hours to have 30 seconds to nail the part. Once, she was told to only sing six bars. Irritated, she held the same note for six bars – but she got a call back.
Her other advice: always respect the accompanist, who can make or break the performance, and make sure your resume is complete. And don’t give up. She’s been to seven casting calls for Wicked but hasn’t been seen yet.
“If you see yourself doing anything else, do it,” she advised. “You need all the confidence in the world because there are so many no’s.”
Eventually, she’d like to perform on Broadway.
“I’m always looking for the next opportunity,” she said. “I want to be working and sustain happiness. But I can find joy and fulfillment even if I’m not on Broadway.”
During her nine months on the road with Cats, she knows what to expect. Smaller towns are welcoming, she said, because they’re not used to having professional theater at their fingertips.
With stops in multiple cities throughout the United States, the Cats cast will get a few hours of sleep at a hotel, then catch some Z’s on the bus.
On the stage, Melissa makes up back stories about her characters to keep herself amused and engaged. During one of those – in which her character in Urinetown is obsessed with the leading man – she attack-hugged him and broke her finger on stage.
She recalled during West Side Story the cop who was to break up the fight between the Sharks and the Jets fell asleep backstage and missed his cue.
“In theater, things happen on stage. That’s what keeps it alive. You have to go with the flow and use improv,” she said.
Her love of acting was obvious, as the animated young woman never let on that her SHS audience was barely awake so early in the morning.
But the teens managed to ask questions, such as, “How do you have a personal life?”
“I don’t really,” she laughed. But the cast becomes like a huge family, going out together and getting connected.
While on tour, they go out and have fun, such as attending a luau in Hawaii or visiting the Crayola crayon factory in New York.
The cast gets very close – but when the show is over, they go their separate ways.
“You have to have a little bit of a hard heart to accept that,” she said, although they do stay connected using Skype, Twitter and Facebook.
On tour, she brings stuffed animals with her and throws her clothes on the floor of the hotel, just to make it feel like home. She also talks with her mom daily.
“I never want to lose that Midwestern happy-go-lucky girl,” she said.