YOUNGSTOWN CONNECTION Local students accept invitation to China

The troupe will perform at prestigious music conservatories and a university.
By GUY D'ASTOLFO
VINDICATOR ENTERTAINMENT WRITER
YOUNGSTOWN -- The Youngstown Connection, a song-and-dance troupe made up of students from city high schools, is about to make a really long-distance connection.
The three-person troupe will travel to China from April 13-24, where it will give five scheduled performances in Beijing, the capital, and Xi'an. It will also make an excursion into the countryside to visit a farming community and give an informal performance, said Carol Baird, supervisor of creative and performing arts for Youngstown City Schools.
The Connection will perform invitation-only concerts at the prestigious Central Music Conservatory in Beijing, the Xi'an Conservatory and Jiao Tong University in Xi'an.
"We were told if the performances were open to the public, so many would show up they wouldn't get in," said Baird.
About the show
The Connection delivers an hourlong choreographed routine, with three themed segments: brotherhood, Broadway and jazz. The Chinese have an enthusiastic appreciation for these types of American music, said Baird.
The Connection has made international trips before -- Berlin in 1980, Madrid in 1992, London and France in 1994 and Hungary and Austria in 2000 -- but has never visited such an exotic place.
So why did they pick China?
"China picked us," said Baird. "They had sent an invitation in 2001, but we couldn't go at the time. They renewed the invitation this year."
The invitation came from the governments of Beijing and Xi'an.
Baird said Beijing and Xi'an are worthwhile destinations because the northern cities are rife with Chinese culture, both ancient and modern, unlike cities such as Shanghai and Hong Kong, which are Westernized.
The Connection won't just perform in China. They plan to see the sights, including The Great Wall, The Forbidden City and the Terra Cotta Warriors.
Preparations for the trip have been an ongoing task, said Baird.
Getting excited
"At first, the students were apprehensive, but now they're excited," said Baird. She's enlisted the help of two Youngstown State University professors to educate the students in Chinese culture and appropriate behavior.
"They're going to learn to eat with chopsticks, because some places in China don't have silverware available," said Baird.
Each of the three members of the troupe -- Ralph Cochran, Asia Littlejohn and David Deeter -- is researching an aspect of Chinese culture and will present their findings to the group. "Every place we go, one of us will know something about what to expect," said Baird.
A member of the troupe will deliver an opening address before the performances in Chinese, said Baird, adding the troupe is also learning to sing a popular Chinese song.
In addition to performances and sightseeing, the trip will include cultural exchanges and other activities.