Thoroughbreds and Bulldogs and Wildcats, oh my! These three animals may seem unrelated at first, but their connection is a lot closer to home than you might realize. They are three of the four mascots of the public elementary schools in the Woodford County District. Most students at the high school spent five to six years at one of these institutions, learning their basic skills of reading, writing, and mathematics. However, for many students, it’s their school’s music program that they continue to express gratitude for. Recently, one Woodford County elementary teacher has utilized that connection to weave a thread between Northside alumni and current Northside students.
Erin Casimir, the music teacher of 18 years at Northside Elementary, began a new tradition in 2024: the Alumni Show Reveal. Essentially, Northside alumni who remain involved in theater or choir are invited to secretly film songs and scenes from the upcoming Spring Musical. Participants are assigned lead roles and featured solos that they learn individually ahead of time, and one student is chosen to create simple choreography for a variety of song excerpts. The prep work all culminates in a single filming day, where the cast assembles their “show” by reviewing lines, learning movements, and filming scenes throughout the day. Casimir then compiles all of the clips into a four to six-minute video that is shown to her third, fourth, and fifth-grade students at the end of reveal week. In the period leading up to the video, she presents clues and teasers to her students in order for them to guess which show they’ll be invited to audition for.
This year, the Northside students will be performing MTI’s Alice in Wonderland Jr., a vibrant 60-minute retelling of the classic Lewis Carroll story and Disney animated film. In the Northside Alumni Show Reveal, characters like Alice, the White Rabbit, and the Queen of Hearts were played by Harper Brady (12th), Carolina Rhea (12th), and Caroline Glass (9th), respectively. The cast performed excerpts from a total of five songs, with Rhea choreographing the 14 students. This impressive feat of song and dance was assembled, taught, and recorded in the span of a mere two hours.
Casimir credits her inspiration for the project to a school in Winchester with a similar design. “I loved the concept of including former students in the process to keep that connection with Northside strong. I also thought it would be fun for our current students to start making connections with former ‘characters’ as they come back in the reveal”, she explains. Her first rendition of the show reveal began when 11 Northside alumnae filmed 4 songs from the 2024 Frozen Jr. musical.
Casimir highlighted the reactions of current Northside students in her interview, expressing, “I love watching the kids get to officially figure out the show. Since they have been getting clues the entire week, when they get the official announcement, they are all so excited”. After the first rendition of the project, it was clear that it would quickly become a staple in the music department.
However, the impact of the show reveal goes beyond just the elementary school students. Middle and high school students alike found comfort in returning to their former stomping grounds and performing in their childhood gym. Harper Brady (The Nightingale, Aladdin Kids, Annie Jr., and Madrigal Dinner) reflected, “Being back just really emphasized that the reason I got into theater and performing was that it was fun and she [Casimir] continues to make it fun to this day. I mean she has her boomwhackers and her drums and she makes every class about creating art”. Brady was a student at Northside for all 6 years of elementary school, and maintains a close personal connection with Casimir even now. The opportunity to go back to their roots meant something different for every student, though, with Lily Gourley (Aladdin Kids, Annie Jr., and Madrigal Dinner) stating, “For me, it honestly brought back a lot of really fun and amazing memories, and it makes me miss working with Mrs.Casimir […] I also really like seeing all the other kids come back- a lot of them are younger than us but we did shows with them and didn’t even realize it”.
Gourley transferred into the Woodford County Public Schools District during fourth grade, but found a quick community in theater. She explained, “Something about Mrs. Casimir that drew me in, was that she was the first person that really saw me beyond a little kid on her carpeted floor. She just understood me in a way, and she still is like that to this day, which I think is really special. She saw stuff in me that not a lot of people could see. Or I didn’t even believe in myself.”
More than anything else, the alumni students expressed their gratitude for Mrs. Casimir’s hard work in promoting the arts and supporting her students. Brady stated, “A lot of people don’t know this, but she does it all on her own […] She gets the props, she gets the lighting, she does the costumes. She devotes so much of her time, even with raising two kids and having a full-time job as a teacher. So I want to be there to give back to her and the theater program she’s built because it’s helped me so much in my journey”. While the contributions of Northside parents and other teachers don’t go unnoticed, it’s clear that Mrs. Casimir’s dedication goes beyond simply fulfilling her contract. She cares about the students she teaches and works diligently to make every opportunity possible for them.
Brady has gone on to become a 2024 Drama Alumna of the Kentucky Governor’s School for the Arts, and Gourley is a 2025 Vocal Music Alumna of the same institution. Both girls were able to find a home in the music program that Mrs. Casimir has built over the years, and their love for the stage has continued into high school. Brady and Gourley’s final reflection on their time at Northside was the perfect capsule of Mrs.Casimir’s impact as a teacher. Brady expressed, “I think a hundred percent more people should be like her. She’s the example of what a great teacher is- someone that goes above and beyond for all of her students […] It isn’t just a job for her, it’s years and years of showing up for her kids, even when they aren’t her students anymore.” Gourley summed up, “She makes a connection with her students and she keeps it for as long as she can, which I really admire about her.”
Mrs. Casimir shows up for every performance her students are involved in, regardless of school, program, or people involved in it. She explained, “I try to stay connected with both the middle school and high school music programs so that I know when they are performing and try to make it to as many performances as possible […] I love being able to see the talent that has developed in these alumni over the years. To think about where some of them started in elementary to where they are now is one of my favorite things.”
The Northside alumni who participated in this year’s 2025 Alice in Wonderland Jr. show reveal are all examples of this same idea. Casimir has successfully built a bridge between past and present years, encouraging community, artistry, and relationships between young students throughout the district.
