Don Bosco Prep students take the stage at Radio City Music Hall
The vocal choruses of Don Bosco Prep and Mary Help of Christians Academy opened for the Rockettes at Radio City Music Hall on Dec. 10.
The Christmas Spectacular starring the Radio City Rockettes, is an annual musical holiday stage show presented at Radio City Music Hall in New York City. The Sounds of Christmas performance that takes place before the Rockettes come out on stage is an annual Christmas Spectacular tradition in which a local chorus is given the opportunity to perform on the grand stage.
The Salesian Choir, comprised of 14 students from Don Bosco Prep in Ramsey and 34 students from Mary Help of Christians Academy in North Haledon, performed a shortened rendition of “Angels We Have Heard on High” by Edward Shippen Barnes and Leroy Anderson’s “Sleigh Ride.”
Don Bosco Prep student Christopher Ariyan said his family headed into the city from Bergen County to see the Don Bosco Choir.
“I realize some people work their whole lives and never get this opportunity. I am sure this will be an exciting memory for my family and me,” Ariyan said.
While the Don Bosco Prep Music Department and Performing Arts Pathway includes a Concert Band, Concert Choir, Jazz Band, Bosco Rocks, Guitar Ensemble, Liturgical Music Group, and Chapel Concerts, as well as a thriving year-round Theater Department, the Sounds of Christmas performance was sung acapella – without any instruments – by the rules of the Radio City Music Hall Grand Stage.
Toni Cecere, the Director of Choral Activities, Chapel Concerts, and Liturgical Music at Don Bosco Prep and Mary Help of Christians Academy learned of the opportunity for her chorus to perform at the Sounds of Christmas over the summer. She immediately sent in an audition tape. The news that the group had been accepted to perform at this year’s concert was inspiring, Cecere said.
“The choral students from Don Bosco Prep and Mary Help of Christians Academy have been working tirelessly to prepare for their debut on the Great Stage of Radio City Music Hall,” Cecere said. “Their commitment and discipline have been commendable. Through this opportunity, we hope to offer students an experience that will stay with them for a lifetime.”
The students have been preparing for the performance since September, practicing three times per week.
The Salesian Choir, named for the religious order of The Salesians of St. John Bosco, comprises students across all four high school grade levels at both schools. While a handful of students have experience performing at large-scale events, for most of the students, this is the very first time they performed at an event of this magnitude.
Gregory Celariste, a Don Bosco Prep student, said that the choir feels like family. “Singing at Radio City Music Hall… is such a big stage where legends have performed, so it is a huge honor to sing on the same stage,” he said.
The students enjoyed complimentary orchestra seats to the Christmas Spectacular after their debut.
Cecere has been training choirs for many years. Before working at Don Bosco Prep and Mary Help of Christians Academy, she worked at the New York Philharmonic and as the personal manager for world-renowned conductor Maestro Zubin Mehta. In 1995, she gathered and prepared a 500-voice choir to sing at Giants Stadium for the visit of Saint Pope John Paul II.
“The choral experience is unique in that it requires ensemble, real group effort,” she said in an interview with Ramsey Neighbors in December. “Singers learn to work together to build something special. And, in this post-COVID world, there is nothing that we need more than to be together. We see the camaraderie, mutual respect, and relationship building on a new level.”
Don Bosco Prep students are not the only performers from the Archdiocese to be on stage for the Christmas Spectacular. In 2021, Immaculate Heart Academy alumna Jaclyn Scerbak DeNicola realized her childhood dream of becoming a Radio City Rockette.
“My alma mater holds such a special place in my heart and is a huge reason as to why I am here today,” DeNicola wrote. “My friends made at IHA are still my best friends, and I owe so much of this personal achievement to IHA for instilling in me all the values it took to reach my ultimate career goal.”
The Don Bosco Prep Music Department will host other performances throughout the holiday season, including an acapella festival in January. For more information or to purchase tickets, visit the Don Bosco Prep website.
