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Trying to make it in the school of hard knocks

The cast of “Teach It Right or Right to Teach!” at one of their recent performances.
The cast of “Teach It Right or Right to Teach!” at one of their recent performances.

It’s hard to top the recent Campout New York Post and Tompkins Square Riots Anniversary Concert for excitement, but Theater for the New City will be putting on their latest extravaganza, “Teach It Right or Right to Teach!” in the park on Sat., Aug. 22, at 2 p.m., at the old band shell site on the park’s E. Seventh St. side. The musical follows the adventures of a young man, Michael, whose first approach to higher education comes with his entrance into New Styles High School after having suffered through a substandard elementary school. He and the school face challenges from budget cuts and no art classes to a charter school trying to take over half their building. Trying to make ends meet, he takes a part-time job as a Disney character in Times Square taking photos with tourists, but not surprisingly, that gets pretty whacky. From McDonald’s fights, encounters with illegal immigrants and the homeless, to the subbasement of Trump Towers, the young hero sees it all. This will be the show’s sixth performance, and their second in Tompkins. “We will have a really big audience,” T.N.C. Executive Director Crystal Field assured. “This musical has gotten a wonderful reception so far.”