Teen actors inspire
By Hannah Lawson
Amp writer
Fairy tale characters leaped, jumped and tripped their way out of the Brothers Grimm’s books to pull together CYT’s latest play. If you aren’t familiar with CYT, you’re about to meet some of the people behind the magic. They have one major talent in common – acting.
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By Hannah Lawson
Amp writer
Incredible athletes of the future are walking our very own high school halls. It’s in the teen years that they develop a strong passion and ability for their chosen sport. Even those athletes who will not compete in later years will undoubtedly develop lifelong skills.
Local teen Matthew Behr walks the halls of Francis Howell High School. He’s been competing in wrestling for two years now, the first year on freshman and Junior Varsity. For his second year of competition, he’s made it all the way to Varsity, though still only in his sophomore year.
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Editorial by Hannah Lawson
Amp writer
My writing has been focusing a lot lately on teens with strong opinions; teens that aren’t afraid to speak out in the realms of politics and national events. I talked to a few of these teens to get the scoop on the recent Rush Limbaugh controversy. It’s been a popular debate in the media, and after hearing more than enough adults discuss it, I wondered what our generation was thinking.
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Rob Lass
Homeschooled teens have been earning impressive scores on the ACT test, which is required by most colleges. It is a test that determines the taker’s aptitude in English, math, reading and science.
In 2008, the national average ACT score was 21. The highest possible score is 36, which was earned by about 1 in 3,300 of test-takers last year, according to the ACT website. I talked to a few homeschooled seniors from St. Charles who recently took the test and achieved high scores.
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By Hannah Lawson
Amp writer
She didn’t go after the opportunity to make a name for herself, but it came right to her. Alexandria Basso, 16, of Clarkson Valley, has recently made a start in acting along with her younger brother and sister. Basso explained how she was introduced to the business.
“Two girls asked if I wanted to do a modeling show. So I went to an audition at the mall for ‘Mother Model Management,’ and out of 280 people, 12 model ‘hopefuls’ were chosen. I met my agent at the show and she asked if my sister and I had ever thought about acting.”
Basso said she and her sister hadn’t considered it, and were told they should start acting lessons. “She loved my sis and me, so she sent us out on some commercial auditions and some theatrical auditions.”
Basso started her acting lessons at a performing arts academy called STAGES in St. Louis. Basso had done theatrical acting in the past, but the focus was on theater productions, not movies. Basso said, “We booked some stuff and built up our resume and then they said they could introduce us to some people in L.A.”
Basso is usually away from home for long periods of time. “I’m gone for about three months and then come back for a maximum of a week, usually four or five days though,” she said.
The rising actor says that her schooling is done online – a virtual academy called K12. She has met more than a few famous actors along the way, including Abigail Breslin, Madison Pettis, Will Ferrell and Patrick Dempsey.
“I met Billy Ray Cyrus walking his dog,” she said. “I saw Miley Cyrus and we waved at each other.”
She also had the opportunity to meet the stars of the Disney show iCarly, saying, “The cast of iCarly is awesome…we hung out with them on set. They’re all just so normal and nice you keep thinking they’re just normal kids.”
She’s also traveled all over from her home in St. Louis to places such as New Orleans, New York, New Jersey, Arizona and Cambria, Calif. Basso said Cambria is beautiful, but that she would prefer to be in New York.
She is also involved in modeling. For the “Saint Louis Bride Magazine,” Basso had a shoot which involved $5,000 wedding dresses combined with horses and cowboy boots.
For teens who are interested in getting involved with the acting business, Basso suggested taking acting classes and researching actors they want to be like.
She also said, “If you’ve got any talent, look up agencies in your city and set up an appointment. Do not go to any agencies or schools that require prepayments. They will cheat you. And do not go to Los Angeles unless you’re willing to give up everything – school, friends; your life. Because if you’re good, you will travel back and forth and you will be sacrificing a lot. It costs money…people don’t realize that…it’s an investment.”
Some of the many expenses include headshots, resumes, plane tickets, agency fees, manager fees and apartment and housing costs.
Though competing in beauty pageants may seem to be related to acting, Basso disagreed.
“Pageants are a totally different ball game than acting in my opinion,” she said. “It boosts your self esteem to have people saying how beautiful you are all the time and then they toss you. I wouldn’t advise it.”
Basso has seen a promising start in movie acting. She has been involved in the movie “Alice Upside Down” and the “Alyson Stoner Project.” Her younger sister, Annalise, and brother, Gabriel, were also involved in “Alice Upside Down.” Annalise recently hit the big screen with Adam Sandler in “Bedtime Stories.” Watch for Alexandria’s name as she and her siblings are cast in larger roles.
By Hannah Lawson
Amp writer
Rebelution has inspired ordinary teens to accomplish seemingly impossible things while following a spiritual calling.
But what is Rebelution? To find out, I spoke to Brett Harris, one of the movement’s founders. Brett has a twin brother, Alex. They are ordinary teens, but at 19, they have already written book and hosted conferences all over the United States and in Japan. They interned at the Alabama Supreme Court. Their website and blog is one of the most popular Christian blogs on the Net.
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