Three Young Artists on the Rise at Paul Revere

By MATTHEW MEYER | Reporter

Paul Revere Charter Middle School is having a strong showing in this year’s PTSA Reflections Arts Program, with a trio of student-artists moving to the state level of the annual arts competition. The school’s three state-level finalists created works in three separate categories: Sydney Shear competed in literature, Alexey Ott in film and Mia Ruhman in music.

The nearly 50-year-old program encourages students to engage the arts by creating works from a variety of mediums—all in response to a unifying prompt. Student-artists participate in the program all over the country, with rounds of judging at the school, regional, state and national level. This year’s theme was, “What is Your Story?”

Ott, a seventh-grader, is a long-time artist but first-time competitor. He created a short film called “My Musical Story.” Combining his passion for music and his skill as a video editor, the film documents the past half-decade of Ott’s young career as a pianist.

The artist told the Palisadian-Post that he’s played piano for five years, and that by placing performances from the course of that career end-to-end, his film chronicles a personal story of passion and progress on the piano. He added that Beethoven’s “Moonlight Sonata,” which he plays at the end of the film, is his favorite composition.

Ruhman, an eight-grader, is a long-time contest participant who also made it to the state level last year. She said that over time, the competition has honed her ability to create works on a tight deadline.

Ruhman’s award-winning entry is a song titled “See the World.” Inspired by a recent trip to China, the piece is about the importance of learning from the stories of others, even as your write your own.

“Everyone has a story, and I think it’s important to meet new people and have unique experiences that push you out of your comfort zone,” the singer-songwriter told the Post.

Ruhman wrote, edited, sang and played piano for the song, but also used a keyboard to add notes from other instruments as well. Asked if she’s interested in a career of creative pursuits, the ambitious young artist didn’t miss a beat: “I want to write a musical and go to Juilliard,” she proclaimed cheerfully.

Shear is an eight-grader and a first-time participant—she had heard of the contest in the past, but was drawn to this year’s program in particular because of its prompt. Shear’s award-winning response to the question, “What is Your Story?” is a poem that poses another question: “Who Am I Really?”

The piece attempts to answer that question through imagery and symbolism, exploring different aspects of Shear’s multi-faceted personality by drawing comparisons to nature. The poet explained that the piece, which has no strict structure, came to her in a burst of creativity. “I just got a piece of paper and pencil and started writing,” Shear explained.

She added that her English teacher, Mr. Slavin, and her mother, who is also a writer, both inspired her passion for poetry.

All three budding artists will now have their work considered for the final, national round of the competition. Regardless of outcome, the creative trio clearly has a bright future ahead.