Roosevelt: Parading onto national TV in New York

By Zenaida Serrano Espanol
Advertiser Staff Writer

Shirley Lau, 17, a color-guard member. Photos by Rebecca Breyer • The Honolulu Advertiser Watch them strut their stuff More than 100 marching-band performers from Roosevelt High School will stride down Broadway in the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade 9 a.m. to noon Thursday KHNL-8

Tiffany Yoshida, 17, left, plays the bass drum.

The heavy rainfall didn't disrupt color-guard member Jenny Yamasaki, either. She twirled her flag, fighting against the wind and whipping splashes of mud onto her rolled-up jeans and white tennis shoes.

"I'm so deathly afraid I'm going to fall!" joked Yamasaki, leaping over a puddle.

Though drenched and dirtied, the 17-year-old seniors, along with more than 80 of their bandmates, continued to play their instruments and march on cue during a three-hour rehearsal. The songs had a surf theme: They played "Surfer Girl," "Surfing U.S.A." and "Wipe Out" in preparation for a band tournament at Mililani High School.

The Roosevelt High School Rough Riders will join nine other high school and college marching bands from across the nation in the 77th annual Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade in New York City this year, earning the marching band a place in history.

The New York performance will be a first for the 73-year-old school, said Gregg Abe, who has been the band director at Roosevelt for 18 years.

"I'm extremely proud," said principal Dennis Hokama. "I'm not surprised. Gregg does a tremendous program, and these kids have always done outstanding."

Winter aloha

Abe applied last November and received the acceptance letter in February.

Roosevelt was chosen from nearly 300 high school and college bands that vied for a slot in the parade, Macy's spokesman Orlando Veras said from New York. "We were very impressed by their musical ability, marching ability and in the overall quality of the band program."

A big group — more than 100 students from Roosevelt — will participate: about 85 musicians, 15 dancers and an honor guard to carry state and American flags.

The students "were a little bit more excited than I was because for some of them, it's their first time to the Mainland," Abe said.

The group leaves for New York tomorrow and returns Dec. 2. In addition to visiting the Big Apple, the students will also sight-see in Washington, D.C.

The trip may also be the first time for many of the teens to experience snow, if it does snow, Abe said.

"They'll be wearing their thermals and whatever else they need to keep warm," Abe said. During the parade, the musicians will wear military-type uniforms with haku lei, while dancers will don mu'umu'u.

The possibility of freezing temperatures hasn't fazed Lazaro.

"It's something different and unique," the Manoa resident said. "It's not very often that you get a chance to travel in such a big group and perform live on TV."

Clarinet player Cory Black, 17, said all her relatives plan to watch her on the small screen.

"It's quite an honor," said the senior from Kaimuki. "You know, you watch it on TV and it's, like, a parade that not many bands get to participate in, and all of a sudden we're going to be participating in it."

The marching band began to prepare for tournaments and the parade in June. Practices were held twice a week for about three to four hours each day.

The band will perform two Hawaiian numbers: one along the parade route and another when it reaches Herald Square and the NBC television cameras.

Abe said he could not reveal what song they will perform along the route because of a contract with Macy's, but he was able to talk about their 75-second routine in front of the cameras at Herald Square. The band will play "I Am Hawai'i," composed by Elmer Bernstein, and the students will do drill maneuvers, creating formations of geometric shapes with group precision.

With more than 60 million viewers expected to tune in, freshman percussionist Marlene Shimamura said she looks forward to her moment of fame on the holiday.

And when the Nu'uanu resident, 14, was asked if it bothered her that she will not be home with her family for Thanksgiving, she answered without hesitation.

"No," Shimamura said. "I'll be with my friends, having a good time."

A piece of the action

Chris Heaton, 17, plays in the band on the Roosevelt High School football field during a rehearsal.

Nicole Nagao and Nicolette Matsumoto, 12th-graders at Roosevelt High, will perform in the parade in their new uniform and mu'umu'u.

"His sister is in Indiana in school," Imamura said. "She's telling her friends, 'My brother is going to be in the parade!' 'How are you going to find your brother?' (they asked). She said, 'I don't have to worry. He's in the front.' "

Imamura is the band booster-club president and will be one of 50 parents and eight faculty members accompanying the teens on the trip. It will be Imamura's and her son's first trip to the state.

"I didn't even think about the cost," said Imamura, 51, an operations manager at a financial institution. "Just to go and have that experience, I was going to find any way to get there."

The trip cost about $1,800 per person. Many of the students participated in fund-raisers, although the proceeds covered just a quarter of the cost for many of them, Abe said.

But parent Mari-jo Tam, 38, of Kailua, said it is well worth the money.

"I kind of think of it as a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity," said Tam, a medical assistant. ... "It's really special for her to be able to go with her classmates."

Tam was sitting in the Roosevelt football stands during last week's rainy rehearsal, watching her 14-year-old daughter, Jana Arre.

Taking a break, some students let loose, going barefoot to squish through muddy puddles.

The Beach Boys harmonies that had resonated throughout the field during practice turned into a chaotic mix of laughter, chatter and senseless tunes.

About a dozen parents, including Tam, watched from the stands as their kids goofed around, showing off an easy sense of camaraderie.

"I'm really excited for ... (Jana) and kind of anxious too because this is the first time she's going away on a trip to the Mainland without me," Tam said.

The sophomore flutist said she is looking forward to exploring the city and seeing the Statue of Liberty and Ground Zero.

But the day of the big performance will be an extra special one for Arre: She will turn 15 that day.

"Oh, my God. I'm really excited," Arre said. "It's like a really big birthday present for me."

Reach Zenaida Serrano Espanol at zespanol@honoluluadvertiser.com or 535-8174.