The Inside Press

Magazines serving the communities of Northern Westchester

Random Farms Theater Group

#JUSTBEYOU Builds Awareness of the ‘Inescapable Bullying’ on Social Media Platforms

by

Final Stop for the Random Farms Kids’ Theater Production #JUSTBEYOU is November 3 in Armonk

The Challenges of Growing Up in a Digital World Come to Life in the Cautionary Tale of ‘InstaPop’

Armonk, NY — In 2008, Random Farms Kids’ Theater began their Anti-Bullying Tour, visiting hundreds of schools to teach about the importance of being true to yourself and accepting others. The tour ‘s original show was called The New Kid and had been running successfully for 12 years before it got shut down in 2020 due to Covid. When starting the program back up this year, Random Farms decided to produce a new show with a continuing and strong anti-bullying theme reflecting today’s digital realities: #JUSTBEYOU.

As the internet and social media rapidly grow and evolve, bullying transforms right alongside it. Despite the many benefits of living in an interconnected world, this growth of technology comes with many new struggles for adolescents. Eric Webb communication manager at Random Farms and the writer of #JUSTBEYOU, along with composer Stephanie Bianchi, says that in many ways social media can create an inescapable bullying platform: “It used to be like if you got bullied at school, you got bullied at school. You know, it’s like you left school and it was over, but now they have access to you at all times.”  In recognizing this major shift in the avenues for bullying, Random Farms commissioned a new show: #JUSTBEYOU.

Ben Wohl as Jordan in #JUSTBEYOU

The new script is centered around a “geeky”, “unpopular” middle-schooler named Jordan who is part of the Comic Crew. When the new social-media app “InstaPop” comes out, everyone at the school is invited except for Jordan and his friends. “InstaPop”, a make-believe app, is essentially a combination of various social media platforms such as Instagram and TikTok; however, this app allows you to like and dislike people, not just posts. Rather than staying true to themself, Jordan sees this as an opportunity to rise in popularity, losing their sense of self along the way and becoming a bully to their own friends. However, in the end, the kids are able to work their way towards realizing the toxicity of this app and the importance of staying true to themselves. 

The part of Jordan is played by eighth-grader Ben Wohl who attends HC Crittenden Middle School and has been acting since he was only four years old. Ben shared that he looks forward to teaching other kids about “the dangers of cyberbullying, social media, and bullying in general.” For elementary and middle schoolers struggling with identity and fitting in, this show will provide valuable lessons as well as a sense of comfort in knowing that they are not alone. “Theater’s a great avenue for a lot of things. It entertains, but it’s a great chance to educate… and give audiences a chance to see themselves on stage in many different ways,” shares Webb.

When kids are taught through theater, it allows them to engage and actually retain what they are learning. Ben discussed how he felt that a play performed by kids was one of the most beneficial ways to teach about such a pressing issue: usually “someone might come to their school who’s older and give a speech for like 30 minutes about bullying, but instead we come as kids their age… and we perform our musical with singing and dancing… so instead of them waiting for the assembly to be over, they don’t want the assembly to end and they also gain something from the experience that hopefully they can keep with them for the rest of their lives.” 

#JustBeYou has already been performed at schools in East Chester, Hastings, and Greenwich, and, as expected, the reception was phenomenal. Webb shared that he “got to go see one that was in East Chester and… kids seemed to really be responding to it.” The tour makes its final stop for the fall at Wampus on Thursday, November 3. After taking a break for the winter season, they will return in the spring to perform four more shows, continuing to spread their impactful message. 

As kids struggle with the difficulties of growing up in a digital world, it is important that they learn at a young age how to be kind to others and embrace each individual’s uniqueness. #JustBeYou is teaching children exactly that in a fun and exciting way.  For more info, please visit https://www.randomfarmsny.org/

“Today I am Grateful” – Podcast Launched by Local Student

by

If you are one of the 100 million people who listened to a podcast while stuck at home during COVID, you are not alone. The medium’s popularity has grown exponentially and industry experts anticipate the number of listeners to exceed 125 million by next year.

While you don’t need to be a sound engineer to launch your own podcast, it does take commitment and dedication to expand your listener base and produce interesting content. And that’s exactly what rising Armonk-based 8th grader Anika Bobra did during the pandemic. Launched in December 2020, Bobra’s weekly podcast titled “Today I Am Grateful” focuses on leaders in various fields from education to medicine to non-profits. She interviews one per episode and has had notable guests such as County Executive George Latimer, Senator Shelley Mayer as well as President and CEO of White Plains Hospital Susan Fox.

Bobra asks these community leaders how they have faced the challenges of the pandemic and what they have learned by living through it. She has also profiled many hyperlocal leaders such as Leisa Palmer, a former teacher of Bobra at Wampus Elementary School, District Superintendent Jen Lamia and Peter Simonsen, Police Chief in Armonk. Lamia’s podcast was one of Bobra’s most popular episodes as was the one featuring Christina Brisson, affectionately dubbed the Vax Fairy.

As a student at Random Farms Theater Group, Bobra honed her public speaking skills. “I love to use my voice and I thought a podcast would be a great way to highlight and honor members of our community and share their extraordinary stories,” says Bobra. Bobra credits New York Times bestselling author Gretchen Rubin’s “Happier” podcast as a key influence on her as she conceptualized her own podcast.

A lot of frontline workers were interviewed on Bobra’s podcast and she was keenly aware of having diverse voices represented. While doctors and nurses were interviewed, she also sought out other perspectives such as that of Mr. John DeCicco owner of DeCicco and Sons grocery stores which went above and beyond at keeping both their customers and employees safe during the pandemic.

Bobra estimates that she spends about two to three hours researching a potential guest, an hour editing the interview and then uploading it into a short podcast that averages eight to 10 minutes. With help from her parents, Bobra researched different platforms on Spotify and ultimately decided on Anchor. Her podcast streams on Spotify, Apple Podcasts and Google Podcasts. In terms of equipment, Bobra’s set up is pretty basic–a school laptop, microphone and Zoom to conduct the interviews.

The concept of gratitude was instilled in Bobra at an early age. Her parents who are both doctors have always emphasized that the secret for happiness is gratitude and appreciating everything you have instead of what you don’t. “You are never too young to be grateful,” notes Bobra.

Bobra believes that her sense of gratitude for these community leaders comes across in her initial communications with a potential guest and has helped her secure influential guests.

Asked if she is an aspiring journalist, Bobra is undecided but she has found it very rewarding to interview people from different career paths. To date, she found the interviews with Senator Mayer and Sheila Patel, CEO of vegan skincare line Graffiti Collective to be her favorites and she has plans on the horizon to interview sources from outside the US as “gratitude is a universal feeling.”

When she’s not out playing on the tennis courts, scheduling interviews or editing her podcast, Bobra has plans on starting an Instagram page for her podcast this summer and possibly a book. With her youthful energy and passion for promoting positivity, Bobra is set to turn all her dreams into reality.

Bobra’s podcast is available on:

Apple Podcast

Spotify Podcast