Culinary Arts and Hospitality Program cuts the mustard, takes the cake, and more–literally

By Jessica Opatich

“Be open to change and make change. People notice change,” advises Professor Richard Freilich, Academic Chair and Program Director of Culinary Arts at the Suffolk County Community College (SCCC) Culinary Arts and Hospitality Center (CAC). Prof. Freilich has been a key ingredient in the success and continued development of the Center. The CAC itself, conveniently located in downtown Riverhead, has not only changed the landscape of Main Street, but has provided local students with the opportunity to pursue careers in culinary arts and food service management. Local businesses in turn are provided with a serving of fresh, skilled, and excited talent.
The relatively new facility (which opened in 2008) differs from similar programs in the region mainly due to its convenient, yet unique location as well as its affordability. The CAC neighbors the SCCC Eastern Campus while the town of Riverheads is a portal to the North and South Forks of Long Island. As part of the community college curriculum, tuition is five, even six times less than it would be at other institutions.
Freilich notes that the CAC was built on vacant land. With funding, grants, and ambition, the building, which is leased, is now a 30,000 square-foot facility that Freilich claims is like no other institute on Long Island. The first floor houses a demonstration theatre that can seat seventy people, giving the space a “Food Network” flare. Besides classroom space there is also the Baker’s Workshop where students can intern five days a week from 8 a.m. until 3 p.m. Baked goods are even sold to the public.
However, there’s more than hands-on baking and culinary. The program offers three Associates of Arts and Science degrees: one in Culinary and Restaurant Management, another in Baking and Pastry Arts, and a third in Hotel and Resort management. There are courses specific to each program as well as other general education courses. A student must accumulate 32 credits, which if enrolled full time can be accomplished in two semesters.
During these semesters students gain a “smattering of information from different perspectives,” Freilich says. There are four full-time professors and almost 30 part-time instructors. Along with the professional assistants that help in labs, the faculty are all professionals. Some still work in the industry and have worked in places ranging from the Marriott Corporation to various high-end restaurants.
Freilich remarks that when he first arrived, he “taught every course we offer.” As the program grew from 15 into its now over 400-student program, that is no longer the case. Why so much growth? Freilich gives a nod to the Food Network and various celebrity cooking shows. He notes that the once-faceless chef behind the kitchen has been elevated to celebrity chef status. People thank that’s who they want to be. The hype of the industry has aided the program. “Anything that highlights our industry is good for us,” says Freilich.
However, has this “hype” been just that? Are students heading into the industry with unrealistic expectations? Freilich admits that he’s not certain of every student’s expectations, but he does say that “we try to keep it exciting.” Reality television “brings a fun aspect to our industry. “ Shows like Kitchen Nightmares and notable chefs like Anthony Bourdain illustrate that there is a “right way and a wrong way.” Freilich even admits to taking certain scenarios and using them as examples in class. The classroom curriculum is also spiced up with interesting demonstrations like the break down of a whole pig, liquor tasting, and beer tasting. Who can say they’ve done that in a classroom setting?
Mostly, Freilich finds that students at the CAC want to be there, work hard, and enjoy the time they are there. There are both scholarships and internships available for students. Students are actually required to do an internship. At any point in the year students have to complete 200 interning hours. They have the option of baking on the premises or interning at sites the CAC associates with like the Hyatt, Holiday Inn, and top restaurants like the North Fork Table. There is even the opportunity to study abroad in Florence, Italy for a month. Students work in a restaurant in Florence while learning about actual products, getting credit, “and there’s plenty of wine,” Freilich adds, grinning.
With a diverse curriculum taught by a professional staff and internship requirements, Freilich states that upon completion of their degrees two-thirds of the students head right into the work force. The rest transfer to four-year colleges or other culinary institutes. The Culinary Arts and Hospitality program has also teamed up with the SUNY Delhi Hospitality Program to allow students to gain a four-year degree upon taking and completing Delhi courses right at SCCC. All credits are accepted, allowing for a seamless transition.
The students that enter the work force are not placed by the school, either. When asked about job placement, Freilich gave his honest opinion that students still need to sell themselves, and that schools that [claim to place students] are misleading. SCCC students as well as employers tell Freilich that they are prepared with excellent skills ranging from management to cooking. Why offer both management and hands-on culinary courses? Freilich confidently explains, “You can’t be a good manager without knowing the back of the house.”
Freilich is no stranger to both management and hands-on culinary. He attended New York City College of Technology and the University of Hawaii, and gained a degree in Food Service Management from the Pratt Institute. He says his mother pushed him towards the restaurant business, beginning his career at the age of fourteen at a restaurant whose owner took a liking to him. In 1976, after partnering with a University of Hawaii colleague, Freilich opened Beachtree Café, a restaurant similar to TGIF, in Amityville. Freilich remembers going into TGIF in New York City and being pleasantly surprised by the eclectic menu. He took that idea and added an oriental flavor. Several more Beachtrees opened, spreading the chain of restaurants across the island. However, the industry changed. “In earlier days, we were the only ones around,” Freilich explains. Eventually an increasing number of chains were opening up on “main thoroughfares.” Freilich sold out of Beachtree in 1998. He also opened the Pasta Presto restaurant chain, along with a steakhouse in New York City.
So what brought him to SCCC? “Because I’m the best,” Freilich laughs. He says he employs the same techniques he used to build restaurants into building the program at SCCC. He is a fan of creativity, developing concepts, and change. “The management aspect is tedious,” Freilich says, chuckling, but only half joking.
“You never know what is going to happen down the line,” elaborates the equal parts chef-manager-director. As for the CAC program, his visions include, but are not limited to, a five-star dining room for events, a certificate wine program in coordination with local vineyards, and depending upon the status of the possible Shinnecock Casino, a program to train students in that area. Personally, Freilich also runs a consulting company. What helping of advice does he find himself doling out the most? “Most people want to be in business [but] don’t understand business basics.” He explains that it is a training and educational process. Luckily for him and the CAC, he has found himself at the helm of a program that does just that.
Ultimately, the CAC, with the guidance of its experienced director and enthusiasm of its talented students, is half of a flourishing symbiotic relationship with Eastern Long Island. Numerous distinguished culinary and hospitality businesses in the area provide employment opportunity for “upcoming young talent.” With an ever-improving curriculum and a director whose visions for positive change and development perfectly compliment his passionate creativity, the CAC is a top-shelf institution at a bottom-shelf price.

Dealing With Stink Bugs

Dealing With Stink Bugs
By Adam Winfield

Small brown insects have migrated north to Long Island. They are named Maromated stink bugs because when they are alarmed or disturbed or threatened, they let off a foul odor. These bugs eat plants such as fruits and vegetables and they have been destroying agricultural crops. Stink bugs are also looking for a place to live and this can cause problems as they enter into student’s households.
Students were asked what they thought of these smelly brown invaders. “I have never heard of Maromated stink bugs said Claire Poitvien a Liberal Arts student at the Ammerman campus. Even more surprising was that these stink bugs were coming in large numbers. “I didn’t know there was an invasion of these bugs, that’s crazy.” said Peter Carroll a Liberal Arts student at the Ammerman campus. A prominent question asked is if they are dangerous. No they are not. This biochemical reaction is not as it is designed to keep predators away. The smell permeates through a large area causing one to want to leave the room.
How can one keep out stink bugs from their household? To keep them out you should seal up every possible opening. The same things that you would do to weatherize your house will keep stink bugs out. Yes, this is a time-consuming, difficult, and expensive process. But physically sealing out stink bugs is the most effective way to keep them out, especially once they’ve discovered your house.

The worst mistake a person can make is squashing a stink bug. They will release their odor when provoked and you will not be a happy camper. The best way to kill individual stink bugs is cheap and easy. Get a jar and fill it about halfway with water, and mix some dish soap into it, like Dawn. Flick the stink bugs into your jar with a sheet of paper or a paper towel. Stink bugs don’t like water, and the dish soap helps penetrate their armor. The soapy water is a surfactant which reduces the surface tension of their membranes so the water can penetrate their bodies. You’ll see them die after a few minutes of struggling, and they won’t leave their lingering stink. You can put the soapy water in the bottom of the vacuum bucket. When you suck them in, they’ll plummet into the water and die.
How can the stench be removed from the surfaces that the stink bug was in contact with? In order to get rid of the stench Orange juice or lemon juice should be used. The citric acid helps to remove the smell from the surface, leaving the surface smelling as it did before the incident.

It is very easy to get rid of stink bugs by using a vacuum cleaner. Dead stink bugs leave a residue inside your vacuum cleaner, which can stink up your home. Once you suck them up, their smell clings to engine parts, and any vacuum attachments you used. A small, handheld vacuum might be best, and empty the bag as soon as possible once you’re done. Put the vacuum bag in a thick plastic bag and tie it tightly before throwing it out as far as possible from your house. Then spray some air freshener or deodorizer into the vacuum while it’s running.

Even though it would be better to keep your windows closed, if you have them open and see stink bugs outside on the screen, put the soapy water solution into a spray bottle and spray the underside of their bellies. It won’t be enough to kill them, but it’ll send them flying off of your screen. If stink bugs gather on the side of your house, you can hose them off with water, or attach a hose sprayer full of the soapy water solution. Spraying them will send them flying and drop a lot of them to the ground, but this method is only effective if you plan to scoop up the fallen bugs into your soap bucket, or vacuum them up with a wet-dry shop vac.

While stink bugs can be a hassle, one should not worry about them. Simply following these steps and accepting that nature sometimes stinks will make for an easier time when dealing with tis invasion. If one does have a very large amount of these bugs one should contact their local exterminator. “I will certainly be more aware of stink bugs” said Bryan J. Magnam a Liberal Arts student at the Ammerman Campus.

Advantages of taking summer classes

By Eddie Valdez

If you have some free time during the summer and feel like you need to fill it with something productive then maybe you might consider taking summer classes.

While the college offers classes during the fall and spring semesters, students also have the option of signing up for classes in the summer. While some might not like to give up any time in their summer to continue taking classes and doing school work one can find many advantages in signing up for them. Some students might sign up for summer classes because they had failed a required course and needed to take it again or if they just want to improve their overall GPA. Taking these classes during the summer term allows one to retake the class in a shorter period of time to try and replace the failing grade while avoiding having to take on a heavy schedule during the fall or spring semester. Another advantage to taking summer classes is the ability to accelerate one’s path to graduation and earn one’s degree in less time than one normally would. “Summer classes helped me get closer to graduation and start transferring to the school I planned to go to” said Kimberly Valdez-Soto, a current student at the college who is scheduled to graduate at the end of this spring semester. Also, with the ever growing population at the college, the fight to get the best classes available during the spring and fall semesters can be a difficult one. Taking these classes during the summer term allows students to sign up without as much competition. While taking summer classes can be advantageous to students at the college, they can also be just as useful to students from other universities who come home for the summer. They have the ability to take classes and earn credits from the college that can transfer over to the college or university they attend.

Now if a student is considering taking summer classes after weighing the advantages and disadvantages, the next concern is about the amount of money needed to pay for taking the classes. “I was thinking of taking summer classes but I am not so sure because I don’t have the money to pay for them” said Jacob Turnil, a student at the college who is currently considering whether or not to take summer classes. Money is a reasonable concern when it comes to college and is always a factor when a student considers the classes they are taking. If one has any financial problems, students have a couple of options available to them in order to lighten the load. As with the fall and spring semesters, eligible students are able to apply for federal financial aid that can help them pay the bill or even completely cover their tuition. Scholarships are also available for students in order to help them pay that can be easily found through a handy scholarship search engine on the college’s website and through booklets that can be found in the Ammerman Building.

So if you find yourself with some extra time during the summer and want to further your education while earning valuable credits towards your degree, consider taking a couple of summer classes. While not every single class that is usually available during the spring and fall semesters are available to take during the summer term, students have a handful of classes that are available and count towards a variety of degrees and programs. If a student has any financial difficulties there are plenty of ways to get the help you need and there are many knowledgeable people who can answer any questions one may have over at the financial aid office in the Ammerman Building. Also, if you is worried that you might lose your whole summer while taking summer classes or if you have any scheduling problems there are three different sessions during the summer course that you can take advantage of to fit your scheduling needs. The summer term is spread over three sessions with a five and eight week session that starts on May 29 and another five week session that starts on July 5. If one is interested in applying for the summer term or has any other questions then head over to the college’s website or visit the Ammerman Building. Summer classes are available at every campus at the college and are available to current students and students who are attending classes at other institutions.

Ammerman Campus Veterans Plaza Polluted by Cigarettes

By Vin Olsen
The Ammerman campus quad is the nicest place to hang out with friends before or after class, you may notice the collecting dirty cigarette butts lying on the ground.
After a couple of minutes of walking around the quad you will see the thousands of dirty cigarette butts laying around the walkway, the piles of them collecting are a sore to the eye and makes the cement walkways look horrible. The quad is one of the nicest spots on campus and it is being tarnished by the hundreds of smokers who throw cigarettes to the side of the walkway when they are done smoking. No one wants to be sitting down waiting for class to start next to a huge pile of cigarettes, it really is disgusting and it would be nice if smokers were to clean up their act and use the ash trays located outside each of the buildings
Many of the students around the campus feel the same way about the thousands of disgusting cigarette butts laying around, sometimes you can literally look at some ones face and see the disgust in their eyes when they look at all the cigarettes outside each door way or throughout the walkways. When walking it is literally impossible to miss stepping on a cigarette but. Lot of students at the Ammerman campus wouldn’t mind this problem being fixed “Its gross that seems to be a problem at a lot of places but especially on this campus.” Said Daniel Sellick from Oakdale New York “When I was in California this problem was not as bad.” This problem may be going on at other places other than just the school but It will be easier to stop on a campus than to do on the streets.
The cigarettes on the walkways aren’t going anywhere they do not get cleaned up after they are thrown onto the ground they stay there for a long time. These cigarettes are just going to continue to keep collecting over time and it is going to get even more disgusting the quad should be a nice clean place for students to hang out and not have to be surrounded by pollution covering the walkways. A student from the Ammerman campus said “I skateboard around the quad all the time when going to classes and you can a even feel your wheels going over the cigarettes on the ground there all over the place, it’s disgusting and something I can really do without.” Says Tom Hengee from Lindenhurst New York. These cigarettes left everywhere is effecting everyone who walks around the campus not just the none smokers. Even as a smoker it is not a nice thing to see cigarettes around every corner of the campus.
Although the school does have ash trays located outside the door of each building there should defiantly be more. Most of the time when students are smoking they are walking throughout the quad and you will not see one ash tray in the middle of the quad. Ash trays in the walk ways connecting each of the buildings where student go to class would clean this campus up a lot. Security officers should enforce this by giving a littering ticket for throwing cigarettes on the ground, smokers should be forced to use the ash trays so this campus can stay clean. Since this campus is a controlled area it should not be too hard to enforce a littering rule against throwing cigarettes onto the ground by security. If students know that they are going to get a ticket if they mindlessly toss their smoke on the ground they will think twice and use an ash tray. As a smoker a fine for any amount of money would make me always make sure to dispose of the cigarette properly. If teachers and security officers enforced smoking in proper areas this problem would shrink.
Cigarettes Around the Ammerman Quad is not a nice sight for anyone, the quad is a place where students should be able to relax and enjoy a beautiful day and not be disgusted by cigarette butts laying around all around them. Even if we can’t stop people from smoking it is still possible to stop this problem. Many things can be done that are not being done that can really make this problem pretty much vanish. It would be great to see this campus be as clean and beautiful as it possibly can with the help of security enforcing rules this can become a reality.

2nd Years Prepare To Move On

By Nancy Azcona




           As the Spring semester comes to a halt, several Radio and Television (RTV) students are ready to move on to bigger and greater things.



The RTV students are graduating this upcoming May and are ready to move on with what they have learned. Most of our graduating students will be attending SUNY Oswego in the Fall of 2013. Others will be attending Brooklyn College. “I always planned to get my bachelors degree, but the program gave me more skills and confidence so I guess you can say it made my desire stronger” said Elissa Wallen, sophomore at Ammerman, when asked how the RTV program prepared her to move on. Students like Eric Ortiz will begin their first year ever away from home. “I’m just excited to start their program up there. It’s a new experience you know. It’s exciting.” Eric Ortiz, sophomore at Ammerman, exclaims about going to Oswego.

The RTV program has a joint admission program with each college. This gives a chance to each student when applying to Oswego or Brooklyn. Students can take all their liberal arts courses and classes that are required for those colleges here as well. This helps these graduating students with multiple aspects of transferring to another college. One of these aspects being money, credits are not cheap, even for a community college. A summer internship course from the RTV program is four credits and costs around 800 dollars. So students are able to save tons of money by talking courses here first, then having them all transfer to one of the two schools. “The reason I didn’t go to the other college I was accepted into was because they cost about 20 grand a year. I don’t know about you but I just don’t have the money to do that. Not even with scholarships. Suffolk is not the greatest but I am getting an education, which is what matters” Mary Hughes, freshmen at Ammerman, said. So with that being the case, people come here to get their start. As Hughes and many others say, Suffolk may not be the best, but it is a great way to start if you don’t have the money to spend; and the people that are in the RTV program say you get your bang for your buck.

 

The RTV program includes film classes, but focuses more on TV production. Al Bernstein, main professor of the RTV program, has been helping and training these students for the past two years, and they feel that everything they have learned will benefit them in the future. While your two years here you take several film/video editing classes, two TV production classes, radio production, and your choice of an internship class or advanced radio class. With this program you are able to gain connections with Al Bernstein that can lead to jobs and internships. Bernstein is connected with several programs, some of them being MSG Varsity, Cable Vision, and NBC. Many students feel that their future is secure due to what they have experienced. “So far with the internship I just got and the friends that I have made so far (alumni of the program) already doing well makes me very optimistic about my future. I have so much more confidence now than I ever had before. Hands on and being thrown into the lions is the best experience” Jessica Elena Chavarria, sophomore at Ammerman, shared. 



The fantastic thing about this program is that many students go in with the mindset of making movies. What they don’t realize is that there is a broader spectrum of jobs available to them. A student realized this through out his time here “It got me exposed to new types of jobs I didn’t know about in the industry that I would love to be” Anthony Varone, sophomore at Ammerman, said. The jobs that they are introduced to in this program are floor manager, assistant director, technical director, and graphics; graphics being one of the biggest growing jobs in this industry. Now that these graduating students start the “beginning to their end” they are confident to succeed and to be the best out of everyone they meet. “I’m more than ready to move on and tackle the next two years possibly four actually” Chavarria said. Wallen was also ready to take this challenge “Yes! No question about it. Confidence is through the roof!”.



Everyone in the RTV program are excited to see where this road takes these graduates, and excited for them selves as they see their time to graduate slowly approaching.

Parking renovation plans

By Sarah Casey-Auld
The ongoing issue of parking has baffled students on the Ammerman campus. Through persistent questioning and endless researching the many questions that hover the subject of parking has been found.
It is to nobody’s surprise that many students receive unwanted tickets every semester due to inconvenient parking spaces. Before speaking with the Director of Fire and Public Safety Baycan Fideli, it was assumed through an educated summarization of previous information that there has been $57,000 unaccounted for since January received by student parking tickets. “On average, approximately 4,000 tickets are issued during the fall or spring semesters” stated Fideli. Combining this new information with previously gained information that claims tickets run from “one-hundred to one-hundred and twenty-five dollars”, said Captain Tracy from the Public Safeties office. It is easy to see that there is around $460,000 collected from student parking violations alone. The overall sum of money that is collected from students has been acquired yet the question of where it goes is still up in the air. The honesty about the amount of tickets issued during the fall or spring semester from Fidel was refreshing although he did not directly state that the student ticket money was going towards improving parking.
The information gained by Fideli was an accomplishment because he continued on in an e-mail. In the e-mail Fideli goes on to express future plans for renovating the parking at the Ammerman campus.”Funding for the project construction phase has been included in …Andrew Cuomo’s proposed 2013-2014 Executive budget” said Fideli. The total cost of the 2013-2014 summer renovations is approximately three point two million. Although this statement does not directly address the question as to what student parking ticket money is being funded towards it does lead into the fact that there is hope to fixing the parking situation. The funding from Governor Andrew Cuomo’s Executive Budget will cover “[reconfiguration] and expand existing parking fields to increase capacity and improve vehicular and pedestrian traffic flow…[and] the cost of grading, drainage, lighting, curbing, asphalt and striping” said Fideli while explaining the goals for the 2013-2014 renovation plans. The renovations proposed are assumed to add around 500 more parking spaces increasing the total over thirteen percent. These renovations are supposed to decrease uneasy parking situations such as dead ends, tight maneuvering and improve sight distances. If “funding remains allocate” as stated by Fideli, renovations will progress as planned.
With this newfound information, students commented on how they would change parking if they had the chance. Throughout the campus students believe that many positive changes can be made to decrease accidents. Christine Scherger is a freshman at the college and had some ideas of her own to share. “I get here 15 minutes early just to find a spot before class so I don’t have to walk too far and whenever I’m pulling out of the lot by the South Hampton building I think I’m going to get hit” stated Scherger when inquired about the colleges parking and driving situation. While renovating it would be wise to not make the bends as sharp. Whenever students are pulling out it is difficult to see and although the speed limit is 15 miles per hour, yet no one obeys the speed limit and students fly around the sharp corners without hesitation. Besides the dangerous bends within the campus, another concern of students is hit and runs. Joe Zerelli witnessed actually the opposite. Joe was waiting in his car for his next class when he saw a woman hit a parked car. The woman proceeded to write a note claiming it was someone else with a description different to her own car, and remained parked next to the hit car and went to class. This type of behavior should not be tolerated and the only way to prevent such acts of deceit would be to put cameras in the parking lots. Through student perspectives new ideas can be formed to accommodate the majority. Scherger, and Zerelli have two valid points concerning parking, whether or not these problems will be fixed is unknown.
The students should be able to participate in their college activities, especially ones that greatly influence them. A portion of the three point two million should go to fixing problems that the students feel occur most frequently. Secondly the fact that the question of where the student parking tickets has not gone unnoticed, yet the e-mail was a step forward due to the amount of information received by Fideli. The renovations to come will undoubtedly increase parking space and other minor and major issues associated with parking.

Campus Community excitment for Tartuffe

By Glen Conway

Tartuffe raising community college spirit and unity.

The play Tartuffe will open on Thursday April 18 at eight at night. The show will continue to run through Sunday 28. It is a play performed by students for the students. Tickets are free to students if you show your student ID card at the ticket window before the show. As the price of the ticket as well as many other costs are included in the student activity fee charged by the college. Additional information about tickets and availability can be found out either at the ticket office in Ammerman’s Shea Theater located within the Islip Arts building or by calling their phone number at 631-451-4163.While the play is free for students it will cost faculty and staff $11. Additional student tickets cost $10. For any other person wishing to see the play should call the box office.
The play is a French classic with many different variations and spins. The theater department is putting their own little spin on the play to make it that much more enjoyable. Tartuffe means “imposter” in French giving the play a comedic yet serious spin to it. After speaking with a few of the actors in the play for the previous article I learned how seriously they are taking the play and how proud they are of it. A lot of excitement can be seen throughout the cast. “It is going to be an awesome play but no I am not expecting it to sell out” said Danny Bua a theater major and one of the stars of the show. He also commented on how excited he is to perform the play in front of a live audience.
A play is something that can bring everyone together. On a community college campus events like these are rare since most students commute. Professor Eriksson of the English department is even going as far to offer extra credit to those who attend the play. He has been pushing for students to go see the play since the beginning of the semester. “The play brings a sense of community to Suffolk and a play acted by students is something that can bring everyone together” said Eriksson during one of his magical realism classes. He further pushed to say how important it is to bring a sense of unity to the campus. Eriksson also expressed his concern for students lack of attention to events going on around the Ammerman campus. As well as his concern about students lack of interest in various campus activities. Eriksson feels students watching a play put on by students is vital to their growth in culture.
After his announcement about the play there was a flurry of students asking all about the play. “Where is the play?” and “Does it cost me anything?” were common questions asked in the classroom. Students across the room muttered about not even hearing about the play or not knowing it was free to the student body. One of the girls even went as far to say that she didn’t know Ammerman campus had a theater in the Islip Arts building or a theater department at all. However after the professor mentioned extra credit the majority of the class said they would attend the play. “I was planning on going anyway but for extra credit I will definitely go” said one of the girls in the class.
However not all students were as enthusiastic. “Personally, I have to work and I have to come to school at early hours.” said Ariel Ransom, an aspiring fashion writer. She further explained how due to her job she has limited free time and does not want to spend it back on campus. “I’m always busy. But when I do have time I like to relax off campus” said Ransom. Which is understandable considering many students work as well as go to school. After giggling she said how the play was a nice idea but she just doesn’t have the time for it. Not everyone wants to come back after a long day at work to go see a school play. Yet she also commented on how a school play is a nice idea. As well as how a free play is good for the community.
The play opens tomorrow on Thursday, April 17. The play will be running for two weeks. If you want to reserve a spot its best to do it at least one day in advance. Each student gets a free ticket for themselves.