Elementary school updates ‘Snow White’ for musical

EDUCATION

Elementary school updates ‘Snow White’ for musical

The classic tale of “Snow White,” like, totally came alive for the 21st century at Newport Elementary School, which debuted scenes from its winter play, “Val E. Gal Meets the Best on the Beach,” Wednesday in the school auditorium.

The musical, adapted from the Grimm Brothers’ story by parent Gail O’Hea and writing partner Sara Lunsford, transforms the famous heroine into Val E. Gal, a modern-day valley girl whose wicked stepmother attempts to kill her with a poisoned TK Burger. But Val E. Gal finds refuge at Newport Elementary and is saved by the love of her life, a young surfer named Gnarly Dude.

* The pedestrian safety campaign got underway Monday morning at Newport Harbor High School, as members of the Student Political Action Committee set bright orange flags on both sides of the school’s nearby crosswalks and asked students to carry them across the street on their way to class.

The campaign started as a result of an accident in which a student driver hit a pedestrian on one of the crosswalks.

Although the school club intends the flags to increase the visibility of walkers, it ultimately plans to approach the Newport Beach City Council about a more permanent solution -- such as stop signs, crossing guards or blinking lights on the pavement.

* At the Newport-Mesa Unified School District’s Tuesday board meeting, the members rejected a proposal for the Orange County Academy, a charter campus that would be the first such site in the district. The board ruled that the charter left too many unanswered questions, although it encouraged the founders to come back with a rewritten plan.

Todd Winkler, the president of the Orange County Academy board of directors, said his group would either return to Newport-Mesa or appeal to the county.20060129ito9ekncDOUGLAS ZIMMERMAN / DAILY PILOT(LA)Newport Elementary School students perform the finale of “Val E. Gal Meets the Best on the Beach” during a rehearsal Wednesday.