By Abraham Marcus
On Friday, March 25th, 20 students, friends, and family of the Murphy Institute’s College Prep Program got all dressed up to go see and listen to a princess at Carnegie Hall. Shiran Wang, the “piano princess” delighted the audience with a full recital program of Schummann, Liszt, and Rachmaninoff without the aid of a single printed note.
One student of the College Prep Program, Marcus Coton, a 32BJ member, had a surprising connection to the performer. On his way into the venue, Coton, a student in the writing class who previously took and passed elementary algebra at the Murphy Institute, met a tenant and board member of the building where he works as a doorman. Halfway around the world in China, the tenant’s family and Wang’s family grew up as good friends. During the standing ovation, Coton’s connection presented the young star with an enormous bouquet.
It was a lovely evening and a nice reminder that sometimes New York is just like a village.
Abraham Marcus is the College Prep Program Coordinator at the Murphy Institute
[In more nice news: we’ve just received word that Marcus Coton passed his CUNY writing requirement this spring and is now able to continue his studies at CUNY. -Ed.]
