February 15, 2025 • 28 mins
The episode highlights Ontario High School's thriving theater program, focusing on its recent renovations and the upcoming production of Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. The conversation emphasizes the importance of student involvement, community support, and the transformative power of theater in fostering creativity and collaboration among young individuals.
• Recent theater renovations enhancing student experiences
• Student involvement in selecting and preparing for productions
• Challenges and creativity in producing special effects
• Reflection on past productions and their impact on growth
• Importance of community support for successful theater programs
• Goals of fostering creativity and confidence in students
• Upcoming production details and ticket sales information
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:03):
Welcome to Steps to the Stage Drama Department, a
7th Street Theatre podcastfeaturing local area Inland
Empire Schools Drama Departmentand now your host, Giorgio
Haddad.
Speaker 2 (00:20):
Welcome to Steps, to the Stage Drama Department.
I am your host, giorgio Haddad,and today we are going to be
highlighting Ontario HighSchool's Theatre Department, and
today I am with the director,jessie.
Welcome to the show.
Speaker 3 (00:33):
Thank you so much, Giorgio.
It's nice to be here.
Speaker 2 (00:35):
So what have you guys been up to in Ontario?
Speaker 3 (00:38):
Well, ontario High School got some new renovations
last year thanks to the AMIgrant, and so our entire sound
system has had a reboot.
Our lighting system and ourlighting board thankfully,
because it had pooped out justbefore the funding came in also
(00:58):
got a reboot, and we are solucky to have such a supportive
administration.
My principal, Larry Rook, andalso the head of CTE at the
district, eduardo Zaldivar, haveboth been so supportive of
making sure that futurerenovations are also happening
within.
So we're getting some new soundtreatment on our very old
(01:24):
siding in our theater and somenew flooring and tiling,
hopefully as well, and thetheater has really gotten a
zhuzh up on the inside.
But also, I think you know,just in general, we're doing
great work inside of there.
Speaker 2 (01:35):
Awesome.
And how is the studentsresponding to all this special
treatment you guys are getting?
Speaker 3 (01:39):
Well, they're very excited, of course, because once
you get new equipment, you havenew skills to learn, which can
be both challenging andrewarding.
But you also have theopportunity to showcase your
talent with better lights andwith better sound, and our
audiences and our students areboth really feeling the rewards
(02:00):
of that.
Speaker 2 (02:01):
That is so great to hear.
So is the theater?
Is it finished or is it stillin the process of being upgraded
?
Speaker 3 (02:07):
Oh, you know, it is a nonstop working piece of
machinery, for sure.
So we had a huge influx oflights and sound at the end of
the summer and we are workingwith that and we are working
with that.
But there are still somecontinued improvements to come.
(02:28):
So we will be continuing toenjoy the fruits of our labors,
and I always every year Iactually write new grant writing
for Perkins Grant funding.
Oh, okay.
And so, because I'm a CTEteacher in addition to being a
drama teacher, I'm able to askfor funds through the state of
California called Perkins Grants, and so I ask every year for
(02:52):
new equipment and newopportunities for my students.
So we'll talk more about thatlater.
Speaker 2 (02:57):
Awesome.
Yeah, that sounds great, andI've heard from word of mouth
you guys are doing a newproduction.
Can you give us some insightabout it and what's it called?
Speaker 3 (03:05):
Ooh, our next musical is drumroll, please.
Charlie and the ChocolateFactory.
Whoa, I know, we love it.
We love it.
This is a Christian Borleversion for anyone who's a
Broadway fan and it is verytwisted.
It has a lot of great musicfrom the movie that many of us
know and love, but it also givesa little bit more of a modern
(03:30):
approach to it, and it does notshy away from the Roald Dahl
gruesomeness as well, and so I'mreally excited to bring that to
life with my students.
They've already submitted theirlead role auditions and will be
continuing to do callbacks andensemble auditions right when we
return on January 6th through10th.
Speaker 2 (03:52):
Awesome.
So the casting has not beendecided yet.
Speaker 3 (03:55):
No, it's all mom's the word at this moment.
Speaker 2 (03:58):
Oh awesome, and I bet the kids are very excited.
Speaker 3 (04:00):
Yes, yes, they really are.
Speaker 2 (04:02):
Awesome.
So for the vision and direction, what inspired you to choose
Charlie and the ChocolateFactory for this year's
production?
If you didn't choose it and ifit was the kids, would you have
an idea of what was theirdirection and why they chose
that musical?
Speaker 3 (04:15):
So I have a process at the end of every school year
towards the middle to the end ofevery school year called the
Play Selection Project, calledthe Play Selection Project, and
with the Play Selection Projectmy students learn about as many
plays as they can and theyselect one that they think would
be great for our school.
Either it's going to besomething that they love because
(04:39):
it's edgy and they just want todo the edgy stuff, which I
totally get, or it's somethingthat they think is going to be
great for our community in otherways.
So one of the more successfulplace selection projects last
year was actually presented byour current president of the
drama club, sebastian Olguin,who you know, and Sebastian
presented that to our advancedclass.
(05:02):
I presented it to the otherclasses and the drama club as
well and it was one of thehighest ranking of our
selections and it just sohappens to be my musical
director's one of his favoritemusicals.
Speaker 2 (05:19):
Really.
Speaker 3 (05:20):
It was one of his favorite films growing up and
it's one of his favoritemusicals, so it was a pretty
easy choice once it was thathigh up on the list, and both Mr
Velasquez and I are superexcited to work on it.
Speaker 2 (05:33):
Solid.
I'm excited to see it too, andI hope the students are ready to
rumble once you guys start therehearsal process and stuff.
I am so sure they're likebiting their nails with the
casting list, like I don't knowwhat I'm going to get, but that
is so cool.
Speaker 3 (05:50):
So how did you and the students approach adapting
such a beloved musical for thestage?
Well, my tech class I have astage tech class which is all
four levels, so I tackled someof the biggest challenges
set-wise and props-wise for theshow for our final last semester
.
So we're really kind of juststarting the process of breaking
(06:13):
away some of those toughermoments.
Because we have a glasselevator that's supposed to fly
through the air, we literallyhave to tear a girl in four
pieces or more.
We have to blow a girl up tothe size of a human blueberry
and we have to shrink a boy downto something that can fit in
the palm of your hand.
We also have to squeeze a verylarge boy through a very small
(06:36):
pipe.
So, you know, just like everydaystuff for theater, right?
So these kids have had a greattime just kind of workshopping
different ideas, and you shouldsee my classroom.
It's just a maker's space ofinvention and that's ultimately
what I want.
I want them to hold the reinsfor this and I want them to be
(06:58):
able to showcase theircreativity and talents and I
know it's going to be a greatshow because the audience itself
has their own experience andimagination and it does sound
spectacular.
Speaker 2 (07:10):
So is the students pitching some great ideas for
all these special effects?
Because these special effectssound like absolutely
mind-blowing.
Speaker 3 (07:17):
I mean we have two prototypes for a human body that
gets torn apart already.
They're both fabulous.
So I mean, just in general, I'mblown away by my kids.
I almost always am, obviously,because I think that high school
is kind of the height ofcreativity going into college as
(07:38):
well, I think your mind is justso exploded with the yeses and
you haven't had the lifeexperience to accept the no's.
So I think it's a great time tobe alive and I love to watch
and cultivate that.
Speaker 2 (07:54):
That is just so amazing to hear, and I'm glad
that the students are pitchingsome amazing ideas.
There's no doubt in my mindthat's going to be amazing, and
I'm myself.
I'm excited for this musical aswell.
Deciding the musical, you toldme that it was a pretty easy
choice, but was there anychallenges?
You think that something kindof like pulled you guys back?
Speaker 3 (08:12):
Well, I'm not sure that I know enough yet to say
that there are challenges tocome.
I'm sure there will be.
I will talk about the previousshow we did, which was Luchadora
and talk about those challenges.
Yes show we did, which wasLuchadora, and talk about those
challenges.
So we also picked a bilingualshow by Sar Alvaro Sar Rios
sorry, I said his name backwardsand he is a phenomenal
(08:35):
playwright who writes a lot ofbilingual plays, and my students
have a lot of families whospeak Spanish as well, so it was
a really great show to pick,and one of the challenges of
this show in particular, calledLuchadora, was that we actually
had to have live Lucha Librefighting on the stage and well,
(08:57):
I don't have that muchexperience with Lucha Libre,
surprise surprise.
Speaker 2 (09:01):
Yeah, I see you guys had a wrestling ring too during
the show.
Speaker 3 (09:05):
We full-on built a wrestling ring in the pit,
absolutely.
And we brought in a friend ofmine that I actually met here at
Chino Community Theater when wewere growing up here.
His name is Carlos Duarte.
We brought him in from LA.
He is a fight director and astunt double in LA and he does
all sorts of great films and TVshows and he became our fight
(09:30):
director for the show.
Speaker 2 (09:31):
No way.
Speaker 3 (09:32):
That is amazing it was phenomenal and the kids just
had a wonderful experience withhim.
A couple of them really gotinto it and got the opportunity
to do some great stunts in theshow.
So I will say that I can't talkto the challenges that are to
come, but the challenges of thepast.
Students have been more thanwilling to tackle them,
(09:52):
wholeheartedly, throw themselvesinto it, and it's just so much
fun to have those challengesbecause that's where growth
happens.
Speaker 2 (10:00):
Yeah.
Speaker 3 (10:01):
The discomfort.
Speaker 2 (10:02):
Absolutely, and I'm hoping they had a good time in a
wrestling ring.
That just sounds so cool.
So for a question for you and Iguess if you could answer on
the students' behalf is how doyou think the production of the
Charlie and the ChocolateFactory will help the students
grow as performers andindividuals?
Speaker 3 (10:20):
Well, there's a lot of different styles of musical
in Charlie and the ChocolateFactory.
So we've got like some R&Bstylings, we've got some full on
yodeling going on at certainmoments and we have just some
beautiful musical theater stylesas well.
And so what I'm really excitedabout is them getting the
(10:41):
opportunity to tackle differentmusical genres and also, with
that tackling the genres, alsogoing into a little bit of
different choreography and Ithink that the characters of
this show are really rich.
You know it's a show that kindof focuses on the seven deadly
sins a little bit.
(11:02):
We've got greed and envy, we'vegot gluttony, and so all of
these things, I feel like, canreally lend themselves to a
character development that'sreally rich, and so I know that
my students are ready for that,and I'm excited to see where
they take it.
Speaker 2 (11:19):
That is good, that's great to hear, and let's talk
more about the history of theprogram.
If you could give us somehighlights and what was one of
your most memorable momentsdirecting a show or having the
best rehearsal day of your lifewhere it's like, oh, this is
just stuck in the back of myhead and I miss it.
But yeah, bring us some moreinformation about that.
Speaker 3 (11:40):
Yeah Well, I started back in 2016.
That's when I began my timewith the program and I began
with a really stellar group ofstudents.
I remember going into my officefor the first time and there
was a note pinned to the boardfrom a sophomore who had somehow
snuck into the office andgotten me a note about how
(12:01):
excited he was to help start theprogram.
His name is Ivan and he really,along with his group of friends
, helped me to build and keepgreat momentum for our program.
And so we've done shows likethe Terror Trilogy, which was
three different one acts.
We did Seussical the musical myfirst year there which was so
(12:23):
much fun with characters and oneof the most incredible sets
that we've ever done, thanks tomy dad's help.
Paul Larson was just phenomenalwith that.
We did A Midsummer Night'sDream.
We did a dual language ofAladdin Whoa.
Speaker 1 (12:40):
So it's.
Speaker 3 (12:40):
Aladdin in Spanish and English.
Speaker 1 (12:43):
Oh really.
Speaker 3 (12:43):
And it is a really beautiful way to tell the story.
It has all of the famous songsfrom the Aladdin musical.
Speaker 2 (12:51):
Right.
Speaker 3 (12:51):
But all of the royalty speak Spanish and all of
the commoners speak English andAladdin and Jasmine come
together and speak like theSpanglish together, basically,
and it's a really, reallybeautiful tale.
So I did have a lot of fun withthat because it was like a
classic story retold in a veryinteresting way.
Speaker 2 (13:11):
Yeah, that sounds so interesting, especially with
like.
So you said they'll switch backto English and Spanish at the
same time.
Yes, that just sounds amazing.
And with the music, too, was itsome of the lyrics?
Was it in Spanish as well?
Speaker 3 (13:23):
Yes, yes absolutely A whole new world, was completely
bilingual.
It was really fun.
Awesome.
We did Little Shop of Horrorswith so many wonderful people
that I still am in touch withtoday.
A Curious Incident of the Dogin the Nighttime was another
great one, where we workshoppedit only in my advanced class,
(13:44):
and so it was a true workshopproduction and the kids just
brought it.
It was really powerful.
I would say.
You talked about looking backto a time where you wish you
could kind of like capture thatagain.
Yeah, we did In the Heights in2020.
And so In the Heights went upin the beginning of March.
Speaker 2 (14:07):
Okay.
Speaker 3 (14:08):
And we had one weekend and there were already
some rumblings.
But by the time the secondweekend was about to hit, school
was closed and we weren'tallowed to finish our run.
And you know, at the time I waslike, oh kids, it'll be all
right, we'll be back in three.
Yeah, we'll be back in threeyears yeah.
We'll be back in a month, maybewe can do it this summer.
(14:30):
Oh, and then, like, justeverything changed right.
I mean, once COVID locked usdown entirely and we really
realized how deeply we were init, I realized that those kids
just would never get the trueclosing that they wanted.
And so I feel like if I had atime traveling device, I would
(14:53):
go back to that time and figureout how to extend their run or
change their run or give themthat closing experience and that
closure that we need.
But also just I had so muchmerchandise that I still have,
so in the Heights we may becoming for you again.
Speaker 2 (15:11):
Who knows, who knows, who knows what the future will
hold.
Because, you know, after, sincethe pandemic, all the teachers
are like, oh, we'll be back in aweek.
And I'll say, yeah, next thingyou know, a year passes by and
you're like, oh my goodness,we're never.
Speaker 3 (15:22):
And within that year I also had a child.
So life is just differentcoming back as a teacher with a
child, with a newborn.
So things were just different.
But when we got back we startedwith a show that the kids
lovingly named MissionImprovable.
Speaker 2 (15:40):
So it was an improv show.
Speaker 3 (15:42):
That way, if I ever had a kid who needed to drop out
because they weren't feelingwell or anything like that, we
were able to still do the showit was really fun.
It was like a game show meetsan improv show.
It was a lot of fun.
So we used our creativity andwe made it work for sure, for
sure, and we've had some greatshows since then.
Speaker 2 (16:02):
That is a really smart idea with the mission
Improvable it's called.
That is such a genius name.
I love it.
So what's your overachievingvision for the Ontario High
School Theater Program?
Speaker 3 (16:15):
What is?
Speaker 2 (16:15):
your goal?
What do you want kids to takefrom it once they leave and
graduate?
Speaker 3 (16:20):
Well as a CTE.
Cte stands for career technicaleducation.
As a CTE teacher and a finearts teacher, I have the balance
of really fostering creativitybut having the mindset of
preparing someone for the realworld right.
And so, overall, no matterwhether my students really want
(16:44):
to go into this art form as acareer or whether they're using
this as a stepping stone forgraduation requirements, what I
ultimately want is for studentsto find their voice Right, for
someone to see or to hear, or toexperience through lights.
(17:06):
I think that all of thosecreative functions of theater
are really important for thesoul.
Speaker 2 (17:13):
Yes.
Speaker 3 (17:14):
And the ability of a student to tell a story with an
ensemble is huge, and so, at theend of the day, if any of my
kids don't go on to a career, Idon't think of myself as any
less of a teacher.
I think that I am a doorway ora pathway to a human experience,
and hopefully they'll be readyto step into it and build
(17:38):
empathy, to step into it and toconnect, and to step into it
with a little more confidencethan they may have had before
they walked through my doors.
Speaker 2 (17:46):
Yeah, I would definitely agree with you on
that, and I'm sure you had ahandful of students that came in
so shy and then once theygraduated, they're all over the
place and they're very confident.
And that's one thing I do loveabout theater too is that you
don't necessarily need to becomean actor right as you graduate.
It teaches you to be very goodand efficient at public speaking
and presenting without havingthat sort of like shyness and
(18:08):
all that.
Another question or I guess,yeah, a question is what advice
would you give to aspiringdirectors or students
interesting in pursuing theater?
Speaker 3 (18:18):
Well, aspiring directors, I'd say read, read,
read.
Know the material that you love, but also find new material
that you love, but also find newmaterial.
Seek out new playwrights.
Subscribe to channels that aregoing to help you to find new
works.
So there are websites whereplaywrights put up their new
(18:38):
works.
There are shows to be seeneverywhere, and I think the more
that you experience, the moreyou can develop your own
personal vision.
But also, even if you'reexperiencing a show that maybe
you don't like so much, you'rebuilding within yourself that
function of developing your eye,developing your taste, knowing
(19:02):
what you like, and I think allof it serves you as a performer,
all of it serves you as adirector, especially.
Speaker 2 (19:10):
Right, Awesome and for the community impact with
Ontario Theatre.
How's the local communitysupport or has the theatre been
involved in any community eventsaround the area?
Speaker 3 (19:23):
So these things kind of ebb and flow.
Sometimes they're built up alot because there are certain
students who are more embeddedin the community.
We have a great group oftalented students right now and
we will always have a greatgroup of talented students and I
wish that every show was asellout success.
(19:47):
But I certainly don't want toprioritize that over the
students' experience of puttingon a great piece of art and
having pride in their work.
Now it takes a lot of money toput on great shows and the
longer the run often the moreword of mouth there is Right,
but in a school a long run meansadministrators having to stay
(20:11):
after every single night.
It means your students notbeing able to do the sports
functions that they need to doduring that week.
And so, in a community where somany people are pulled very,
very thin, I always want tobalance the life with the art,
and so, you know, sometimes weonly have four shows, or two
(20:36):
shows, or three shows, and it'sdevastating for the kids who put
in you know, three months'worth of work to have, you know
a handful of their familiesactually be able to come.
So we're working on it.
That's in a constant state offlux.
But I definitely think that thatis one area that hopefully
(20:56):
being on this podcast and alsojust putting students first when
it comes to allowing them toexpress, to share their shows
and to share their experiences.
Hopefully that'll just continueto bring people back and alumni
.
If you're listening, I loveseeing you at our shows.
So please, please, please, comeback over and over again,
(21:19):
Because once you spend the timewith me, I'm always your mama
and this is always your home.
Speaker 2 (21:26):
And that sounds really, really great.
And have any of your studentsever came up to you and said
would this, this thing that youhave taught me, or whatever
subject that you have taughtthem, has changed their life in
a way where it's completely outof the box, away from them,
where it's like they used to beshy, like we talked about, and
now they're like this wholedifferent person?
Speaker 3 (21:46):
where it's like they used to be shy, like we talked
about, and now they're like thiswhole different person.
I feel like almost every year,almost every semester, there's
one or two lights that getturned on that a student
actually feels comfortabletalking about, and sometimes
it'll be in a little survey atthe end where I say just leave
me a message, anything that youwant or don't, and I'll just get
(22:08):
you know.
This beautiful, beautifulexchange of like this is what
you have done and this is how Ifeel now.
So, yeah, all of those are verypriceless.
I know that there are certainlystudents who have found that
they are finally seen for whothey are in my class or accepted
for who they are with me, and Ithink one of the most important
(22:32):
things is just that safe spacefor expression that students can
have and that they can continueto learn and to delve without
fear of having to hide theirtrue self.
Speaker 2 (22:44):
Absolutely yes, and I did see your passion full hand
too during Superstars.
You are such an amazingdirector as well, alongside with
Donna, and I do always lookback at being in such an amazing
program with amazing directors,and I myself had a wonderful
experience.
So I thank you for that and Ihope that the students are ready
(23:05):
to rumble with Charlie and theChocolate Factory.
I hope that if they'relistening and they keep hearing
the word Charlie and theChocolate Factory like yes, yes
keep talking about it.
Come with me, and for thismusical in particular, what
themes or messages do you hoperesonate with the audience
through this production?
Speaker 3 (23:21):
Well, I think this musical doesn't pull any punches
when it comes to its judgmentsof people.
It definitely, you know, hasits finger on the pulse of so
many problematic behaviors thateither we as an American society
have, or just societies ingeneral may have, relating to,
(23:45):
you know, to just the constantintake of social media or of the
need to be seen and don't getme wrong, it's important to be
seen.
Speaker 2 (23:56):
Yeah, yeah.
Speaker 3 (23:56):
Right, but the monetary value that's attached
to that maybe is where we get alittle broken right.
And so what I hope is that thedreamers in us get realized
through the course of this show,because really it's about
thinking outside of the box andit's about accepting the what
ifs as the what if they areright now right.
(24:18):
Without any judgment, to justreally be able to dive in and to
say yes to an idea and then letit figure itself out.
Yeah, right, and so I hope that,yes, there are lessons to be
learned in it and there arecertainly moral compasses that
guide the show, but at the endof the day, I think it's really
(24:41):
about the dreamers and acceptingthe dreamer in all of us.
Speaker 2 (24:44):
Absolutely, I 100% agree.
During this whole process, oreven if you watched I'm assuming
you watched the film, what haveyou learned from it, especially
aside from the dreamers andstuff?
What is one thing that didcatch your attention?
Speaker 3 (24:57):
Well, I love that Gene Wilder.
I don't know if you know thisstory, but Gene Wilder, when he
accepted the role, he said hewould only accept it on one
condition that Greenwilder, whenhe accepted the role, he said
(25:19):
he would only accept it on onecondition that he could come out
with a cane and act feeble andold and then somersault into the
body that he has.
And so I'm probably misphrasingit slightly but, he said that he
wouldn't do it unless he hadthat moment, because from that
moment on, you would never knowif he was telling the truth or
not.
Speaker 2 (25:31):
Right.
Speaker 3 (25:31):
And so I like that idea of play, I like that
slightly on edge moment and Ithink that I think it's going to
be really interesting to findthat balance for this show,
because it is kind of dark butit's also kids play.
Yeah, yeah, and so I thinkit'll be fun to kind of find
that teeter teetering point andto really balance on it as much
(25:54):
as possible to pull the audiencein, but then to always make
them laugh at themselves at theend too.
Speaker 2 (26:00):
I see, yeah, yeah.
So I don't know if you couldanswer this fully, but are you
thinking of implementing thatlittle cane scene?
Speaker 3 (26:07):
Oh well, there are certain things that you have to
have in the show because it'swritten into a script and you're
signing licensing agreements.
So once our scripts come inwhich they were shipped today,
oh, awesome.
Thanks to MTI's website, soonce our scripts come in, we'll
be able to verify all the thingsthat we definitely need to keep
(26:30):
, and also sometimes inlicensing agreements, they tell
you certain things that youcan't do.
You have to create things foryourselves as well.
So I'm always a good fan of notgetting sued, so I'll make sure
that I follow those rules too.
Speaker 2 (26:44):
Awesome.
Well, thank you so much forbeing on the show.
I had such a wonderful timecatching up and, especially, I'm
so excited for Charlie and theChocolate Factory that I got so
much information.
And to whoever is listening,jesse, if you could tell us,
when is the tickets released?
Are they already released?
Speaker 3 (27:00):
Yeah, yeah, yeah, so we will probably open up ticket
sales in February, mid-February.
Our show opens on March 7th.
It runs the 7th, 8th, 14th and15th at the Ontario High School
Performing Arts Centre, and allof that information.
I think the best way to findout information about our shows,
(27:21):
unless you're live on campus atOntario High School, is to
follow us on Instagram or TikTokat Jagspotlights.
Speaker 2 (27:30):
Yes, you heard it here.
Folks Grab your tickets whenthey release and there's no
doubt about it.
This production is going to beamazing, especially with the new
technical stuff, and I hope thestudents are ready to rumble
again.
I dislike the time I keepsaying it, but it's making me
excited talking about it.
But thank you so much, jessie,and I appreciate it so much.
Speaker 3 (27:49):
Thank you, Giorgio.
Speaker 1 (27:54):
Thanks for listening to Steps to the Stage Drama
Depart, a 7th Street CommunityTheatre podcast.
Follow us on your favoritepodcast platform and leave us a
review and a five-star rating.
You can also follow us onInstagram or Facebook and
subscribe to our YouTube channel.
Special thanks to ChinoCommunity Theater and Chino
Community Children's Theater fortheir generous support.
(28:16):
Steps to the Stage was createdby Joey Rice and Kirk Lane.
Logo created by Marlee Lane.
Original music by Joey Rice andDevon, your host and producer,
giorgio Haddad.
Engineering producer Joey Rice.
Engineering executive producerKirk Lane.
Welcome to Steps to the Stage Drama Department, a
7th Street Theatre podcastfeaturing local area Inland
Empire Schools Drama Departmentand now your host, Giorgio
Haddad.
Speaker 2 (00:20):
Welcome to Steps, to the Stage Drama Department.
I am your host, giorgio Haddad,and today we are going to be
highlighting Ontario HighSchool's Theatre Department, and
today I am with the director,jessie.
Welcome to the show.
Speaker 3 (00:33):
Thank you so much, Giorgio.
It's nice to be here.
Speaker 2 (00:35):
So what have you guys been up to in Ontario?
Speaker 3 (00:38):
Well, ontario High School got some new renovations
last year thanks to the AMIgrant, and so our entire sound
system has had a reboot.
Our lighting system and ourlighting board thankfully,
because it had pooped out justbefore the funding came in also
(00:58):
got a reboot, and we are solucky to have such a supportive
administration.
My principal, Larry Rook, andalso the head of CTE at the
district, eduardo Zaldivar, haveboth been so supportive of
making sure that futurerenovations are also happening
within.
So we're getting some new soundtreatment on our very old
(01:24):
siding in our theater and somenew flooring and tiling,
hopefully as well, and thetheater has really gotten a
zhuzh up on the inside.
But also, I think you know,just in general, we're doing
great work inside of there.
Speaker 2 (01:35):
Awesome.
And how is the studentsresponding to all this special
treatment you guys are getting?
Speaker 3 (01:39):
Well, they're very excited, of course, because once
you get new equipment, you havenew skills to learn, which can
be both challenging andrewarding.
But you also have theopportunity to showcase your
talent with better lights andwith better sound, and our
audiences and our students areboth really feeling the rewards
(02:00):
of that.
Speaker 2 (02:01):
That is so great to hear.
So is the theater?
Is it finished or is it stillin the process of being upgraded
?
Speaker 3 (02:07):
Oh, you know, it is a nonstop working piece of
machinery, for sure.
So we had a huge influx oflights and sound at the end of
the summer and we are workingwith that and we are working
with that.
But there are still somecontinued improvements to come.
(02:28):
So we will be continuing toenjoy the fruits of our labors,
and I always every year Iactually write new grant writing
for Perkins Grant funding.
Oh, okay.
And so, because I'm a CTEteacher in addition to being a
drama teacher, I'm able to askfor funds through the state of
California called Perkins Grants, and so I ask every year for
(02:52):
new equipment and newopportunities for my students.
So we'll talk more about thatlater.
Speaker 2 (02:57):
Awesome.
Yeah, that sounds great, andI've heard from word of mouth
you guys are doing a newproduction.
Can you give us some insightabout it and what's it called?
Speaker 3 (03:05):
Ooh, our next musical is drumroll, please.
Charlie and the ChocolateFactory.
Whoa, I know, we love it.
We love it.
This is a Christian Borleversion for anyone who's a
Broadway fan and it is verytwisted.
It has a lot of great musicfrom the movie that many of us
know and love, but it also givesa little bit more of a modern
(03:30):
approach to it, and it does notshy away from the Roald Dahl
gruesomeness as well, and so I'mreally excited to bring that to
life with my students.
They've already submitted theirlead role auditions and will be
continuing to do callbacks andensemble auditions right when we
return on January 6th through10th.
Speaker 2 (03:52):
Awesome.
So the casting has not beendecided yet.
Speaker 3 (03:55):
No, it's all mom's the word at this moment.
Speaker 2 (03:58):
Oh awesome, and I bet the kids are very excited.
Speaker 3 (04:00):
Yes, yes, they really are.
Speaker 2 (04:02):
Awesome.
So for the vision and direction, what inspired you to choose
Charlie and the ChocolateFactory for this year's
production?
If you didn't choose it and ifit was the kids, would you have
an idea of what was theirdirection and why they chose
that musical?
Speaker 3 (04:15):
So I have a process at the end of every school year
towards the middle to the end ofevery school year called the
Play Selection Project, calledthe Play Selection Project, and
with the Play Selection Projectmy students learn about as many
plays as they can and theyselect one that they think would
be great for our school.
Either it's going to besomething that they love because
(04:39):
it's edgy and they just want todo the edgy stuff, which I
totally get, or it's somethingthat they think is going to be
great for our community in otherways.
So one of the more successfulplace selection projects last
year was actually presented byour current president of the
drama club, sebastian Olguin,who you know, and Sebastian
presented that to our advancedclass.
(05:02):
I presented it to the otherclasses and the drama club as
well and it was one of thehighest ranking of our
selections and it just sohappens to be my musical
director's one of his favoritemusicals.
Speaker 2 (05:19):
Really.
Speaker 3 (05:20):
It was one of his favorite films growing up and
it's one of his favoritemusicals, so it was a pretty
easy choice once it was thathigh up on the list, and both Mr
Velasquez and I are superexcited to work on it.
Speaker 2 (05:33):
Solid.
I'm excited to see it too, andI hope the students are ready to
rumble once you guys start therehearsal process and stuff.
I am so sure they're likebiting their nails with the
casting list, like I don't knowwhat I'm going to get, but that
is so cool.
Speaker 3 (05:50):
So how did you and the students approach adapting
such a beloved musical for thestage?
Well, my tech class I have astage tech class which is all
four levels, so I tackled someof the biggest challenges
set-wise and props-wise for theshow for our final last semester
.
So we're really kind of juststarting the process of breaking
(06:13):
away some of those toughermoments.
Because we have a glasselevator that's supposed to fly
through the air, we literallyhave to tear a girl in four
pieces or more.
We have to blow a girl up tothe size of a human blueberry
and we have to shrink a boy downto something that can fit in
the palm of your hand.
We also have to squeeze a verylarge boy through a very small
(06:36):
pipe.
So, you know, just like everydaystuff for theater, right?
So these kids have had a greattime just kind of workshopping
different ideas, and you shouldsee my classroom.
It's just a maker's space ofinvention and that's ultimately
what I want.
I want them to hold the reinsfor this and I want them to be
(06:58):
able to showcase theircreativity and talents and I
know it's going to be a greatshow because the audience itself
has their own experience andimagination and it does sound
spectacular.
Speaker 2 (07:10):
So is the students pitching some great ideas for
all these special effects?
Because these special effectssound like absolutely
mind-blowing.
Speaker 3 (07:17):
I mean we have two prototypes for a human body that
gets torn apart already.
They're both fabulous.
So I mean, just in general, I'mblown away by my kids.
I almost always am, obviously,because I think that high school
is kind of the height ofcreativity going into college as
(07:38):
well, I think your mind is justso exploded with the yeses and
you haven't had the lifeexperience to accept the no's.
So I think it's a great time tobe alive and I love to watch
and cultivate that.
Speaker 2 (07:54):
That is just so amazing to hear, and I'm glad
that the students are pitchingsome amazing ideas.
There's no doubt in my mindthat's going to be amazing, and
I'm myself.
I'm excited for this musical aswell.
Deciding the musical, you toldme that it was a pretty easy
choice, but was there anychallenges?
You think that something kindof like pulled you guys back?
Speaker 3 (08:12):
Well, I'm not sure that I know enough yet to say
that there are challenges tocome.
I'm sure there will be.
I will talk about the previousshow we did, which was Luchadora
and talk about those challenges.
Yes show we did, which wasLuchadora, and talk about those
challenges.
So we also picked a bilingualshow by Sar Alvaro Sar Rios
sorry, I said his name backwardsand he is a phenomenal
(08:35):
playwright who writes a lot ofbilingual plays, and my students
have a lot of families whospeak Spanish as well, so it was
a really great show to pick,and one of the challenges of
this show in particular, calledLuchadora, was that we actually
had to have live Lucha Librefighting on the stage and well,
(08:57):
I don't have that muchexperience with Lucha Libre,
surprise surprise.
Speaker 2 (09:01):
Yeah, I see you guys had a wrestling ring too during
the show.
Speaker 3 (09:05):
We full-on built a wrestling ring in the pit,
absolutely.
And we brought in a friend ofmine that I actually met here at
Chino Community Theater when wewere growing up here.
His name is Carlos Duarte.
We brought him in from LA.
He is a fight director and astunt double in LA and he does
all sorts of great films and TVshows and he became our fight
(09:30):
director for the show.
Speaker 2 (09:31):
No way.
Speaker 3 (09:32):
That is amazing it was phenomenal and the kids just
had a wonderful experience withhim.
A couple of them really gotinto it and got the opportunity
to do some great stunts in theshow.
So I will say that I can't talkto the challenges that are to
come, but the challenges of thepast.
Students have been more thanwilling to tackle them,
(09:52):
wholeheartedly, throw themselvesinto it, and it's just so much
fun to have those challengesbecause that's where growth
happens.
Speaker 2 (10:00):
Yeah.
Speaker 3 (10:01):
The discomfort.
Speaker 2 (10:02):
Absolutely, and I'm hoping they had a good time in a
wrestling ring.
That just sounds so cool.
So for a question for you and Iguess if you could answer on
the students' behalf is how doyou think the production of the
Charlie and the ChocolateFactory will help the students
grow as performers andindividuals?
Speaker 3 (10:20):
Well, there's a lot of different styles of musical
in Charlie and the ChocolateFactory.
So we've got like some R&Bstylings, we've got some full on
yodeling going on at certainmoments and we have just some
beautiful musical theater stylesas well.
And so what I'm really excitedabout is them getting the
(10:41):
opportunity to tackle differentmusical genres and also, with
that tackling the genres, alsogoing into a little bit of
different choreography and Ithink that the characters of
this show are really rich.
You know it's a show that kindof focuses on the seven deadly
sins a little bit.
(11:02):
We've got greed and envy, we'vegot gluttony, and so all of
these things, I feel like, canreally lend themselves to a
character development that'sreally rich, and so I know that
my students are ready for that,and I'm excited to see where
they take it.
Speaker 2 (11:19):
That is good, that's great to hear, and let's talk
more about the history of theprogram.
If you could give us somehighlights and what was one of
your most memorable momentsdirecting a show or having the
best rehearsal day of your lifewhere it's like, oh, this is
just stuck in the back of myhead and I miss it.
But yeah, bring us some moreinformation about that.
Speaker 3 (11:40):
Yeah Well, I started back in 2016.
That's when I began my timewith the program and I began
with a really stellar group ofstudents.
I remember going into my officefor the first time and there
was a note pinned to the boardfrom a sophomore who had somehow
snuck into the office andgotten me a note about how
(12:01):
excited he was to help start theprogram.
His name is Ivan and he really,along with his group of friends
, helped me to build and keepgreat momentum for our program.
And so we've done shows likethe Terror Trilogy, which was
three different one acts.
We did Seussical the musical myfirst year there which was so
(12:23):
much fun with characters and oneof the most incredible sets
that we've ever done, thanks tomy dad's help.
Paul Larson was just phenomenalwith that.
We did A Midsummer Night'sDream.
We did a dual language ofAladdin Whoa.
Speaker 1 (12:40):
So it's.
Speaker 3 (12:40):
Aladdin in Spanish and English.
Speaker 1 (12:43):
Oh really.
Speaker 3 (12:43):
And it is a really beautiful way to tell the story.
It has all of the famous songsfrom the Aladdin musical.
Speaker 2 (12:51):
Right.
Speaker 3 (12:51):
But all of the royalty speak Spanish and all of
the commoners speak English andAladdin and Jasmine come
together and speak like theSpanglish together, basically,
and it's a really, reallybeautiful tale.
So I did have a lot of fun withthat because it was like a
classic story retold in a veryinteresting way.
Speaker 2 (13:11):
Yeah, that sounds so interesting, especially with
like.
So you said they'll switch backto English and Spanish at the
same time.
Yes, that just sounds amazing.
And with the music, too, was itsome of the lyrics?
Was it in Spanish as well?
Speaker 3 (13:23):
Yes, yes absolutely A whole new world, was completely
bilingual.
It was really fun.
Awesome.
We did Little Shop of Horrorswith so many wonderful people
that I still am in touch withtoday.
A Curious Incident of the Dogin the Nighttime was another
great one, where we workshoppedit only in my advanced class,
(13:44):
and so it was a true workshopproduction and the kids just
brought it.
It was really powerful.
I would say.
You talked about looking backto a time where you wish you
could kind of like capture thatagain.
Yeah, we did In the Heights in2020.
And so In the Heights went upin the beginning of March.
Speaker 2 (14:07):
Okay.
Speaker 3 (14:08):
And we had one weekend and there were already
some rumblings.
But by the time the secondweekend was about to hit, school
was closed and we weren'tallowed to finish our run.
And you know, at the time I waslike, oh kids, it'll be all
right, we'll be back in three.
Yeah, we'll be back in threeyears yeah.
We'll be back in a month, maybewe can do it this summer.
(14:30):
Oh, and then, like, justeverything changed right.
I mean, once COVID locked usdown entirely and we really
realized how deeply we were init, I realized that those kids
just would never get the trueclosing that they wanted.
And so I feel like if I had atime traveling device, I would
(14:53):
go back to that time and figureout how to extend their run or
change their run or give themthat closing experience and that
closure that we need.
But also just I had so muchmerchandise that I still have,
so in the Heights we may becoming for you again.
Speaker 2 (15:11):
Who knows, who knows, who knows what the future will
hold.
Because, you know, after, sincethe pandemic, all the teachers
are like, oh, we'll be back in aweek.
And I'll say, yeah, next thingyou know, a year passes by and
you're like, oh my goodness,we're never.
Speaker 3 (15:22):
And within that year I also had a child.
So life is just differentcoming back as a teacher with a
child, with a newborn.
So things were just different.
But when we got back we startedwith a show that the kids
lovingly named MissionImprovable.
Speaker 2 (15:40):
So it was an improv show.
Speaker 3 (15:42):
That way, if I ever had a kid who needed to drop out
because they weren't feelingwell or anything like that, we
were able to still do the showit was really fun.
It was like a game show meetsan improv show.
It was a lot of fun.
So we used our creativity andwe made it work for sure, for
sure, and we've had some greatshows since then.
Speaker 2 (16:02):
That is a really smart idea with the mission
Improvable it's called.
That is such a genius name.
I love it.
So what's your overachievingvision for the Ontario High
School Theater Program?
Speaker 3 (16:15):
What is?
Speaker 2 (16:15):
your goal?
What do you want kids to takefrom it once they leave and
graduate?
Speaker 3 (16:20):
Well as a CTE.
Cte stands for career technicaleducation.
As a CTE teacher and a finearts teacher, I have the balance
of really fostering creativitybut having the mindset of
preparing someone for the realworld right.
And so, overall, no matterwhether my students really want
(16:44):
to go into this art form as acareer or whether they're using
this as a stepping stone forgraduation requirements, what I
ultimately want is for studentsto find their voice Right, for
someone to see or to hear, or toexperience through lights.
(17:06):
I think that all of thosecreative functions of theater
are really important for thesoul.
Speaker 2 (17:13):
Yes.
Speaker 3 (17:14):
And the ability of a student to tell a story with an
ensemble is huge, and so, at theend of the day, if any of my
kids don't go on to a career, Idon't think of myself as any
less of a teacher.
I think that I am a doorway ora pathway to a human experience,
and hopefully they'll be readyto step into it and build
(17:38):
empathy, to step into it and toconnect, and to step into it
with a little more confidencethan they may have had before
they walked through my doors.
Speaker 2 (17:46):
Yeah, I would definitely agree with you on
that, and I'm sure you had ahandful of students that came in
so shy and then once theygraduated, they're all over the
place and they're very confident.
And that's one thing I do loveabout theater too is that you
don't necessarily need to becomean actor right as you graduate.
It teaches you to be very goodand efficient at public speaking
and presenting without havingthat sort of like shyness and
(18:08):
all that.
Another question or I guess,yeah, a question is what advice
would you give to aspiringdirectors or students
interesting in pursuing theater?
Speaker 3 (18:18):
Well, aspiring directors, I'd say read, read,
read.
Know the material that you love, but also find new material
that you love, but also find newmaterial.
Seek out new playwrights.
Subscribe to channels that aregoing to help you to find new
works.
So there are websites whereplaywrights put up their new
(18:38):
works.
There are shows to be seeneverywhere, and I think the more
that you experience, the moreyou can develop your own
personal vision.
But also, even if you'reexperiencing a show that maybe
you don't like so much, you'rebuilding within yourself that
function of developing your eye,developing your taste, knowing
(19:02):
what you like, and I think allof it serves you as a performer,
all of it serves you as adirector, especially.
Speaker 2 (19:10):
Right, Awesome and for the community impact with
Ontario Theatre.
How's the local communitysupport or has the theatre been
involved in any community eventsaround the area?
Speaker 3 (19:23):
So these things kind of ebb and flow.
Sometimes they're built up alot because there are certain
students who are more embeddedin the community.
We have a great group oftalented students right now and
we will always have a greatgroup of talented students and I
wish that every show was asellout success.
(19:47):
But I certainly don't want toprioritize that over the
students' experience of puttingon a great piece of art and
having pride in their work.
Now it takes a lot of money toput on great shows and the
longer the run often the moreword of mouth there is Right,
but in a school a long run meansadministrators having to stay
(20:11):
after every single night.
It means your students notbeing able to do the sports
functions that they need to doduring that week.
And so, in a community where somany people are pulled very,
very thin, I always want tobalance the life with the art,
and so, you know, sometimes weonly have four shows, or two
(20:36):
shows, or three shows, and it'sdevastating for the kids who put
in you know, three months'worth of work to have, you know
a handful of their familiesactually be able to come.
So we're working on it.
That's in a constant state offlux.
But I definitely think that thatis one area that hopefully
(20:56):
being on this podcast and alsojust putting students first when
it comes to allowing them toexpress, to share their shows
and to share their experiences.
Hopefully that'll just continueto bring people back and alumni
.
If you're listening, I loveseeing you at our shows.
So please, please, please, comeback over and over again,
(21:19):
Because once you spend the timewith me, I'm always your mama
and this is always your home.
Speaker 2 (21:26):
And that sounds really, really great.
And have any of your studentsever came up to you and said
would this, this thing that youhave taught me, or whatever
subject that you have taughtthem, has changed their life in
a way where it's completely outof the box, away from them,
where it's like they used to beshy, like we talked about, and
now they're like this wholedifferent person?
Speaker 3 (21:46):
where it's like they used to be shy, like we talked
about, and now they're like thiswhole different person.
I feel like almost every year,almost every semester, there's
one or two lights that getturned on that a student
actually feels comfortabletalking about, and sometimes
it'll be in a little survey atthe end where I say just leave
me a message, anything that youwant or don't, and I'll just get
(22:08):
you know.
This beautiful, beautifulexchange of like this is what
you have done and this is how Ifeel now.
So, yeah, all of those are verypriceless.
I know that there are certainlystudents who have found that
they are finally seen for whothey are in my class or accepted
for who they are with me, and Ithink one of the most important
(22:32):
things is just that safe spacefor expression that students can
have and that they can continueto learn and to delve without
fear of having to hide theirtrue self.
Speaker 2 (22:44):
Absolutely yes, and I did see your passion full hand
too during Superstars.
You are such an amazingdirector as well, alongside with
Donna, and I do always lookback at being in such an amazing
program with amazing directors,and I myself had a wonderful
experience.
So I thank you for that and Ihope that the students are ready
(23:05):
to rumble with Charlie and theChocolate Factory.
I hope that if they'relistening and they keep hearing
the word Charlie and theChocolate Factory like yes, yes
keep talking about it.
Come with me, and for thismusical in particular, what
themes or messages do you hoperesonate with the audience
through this production?
Speaker 3 (23:21):
Well, I think this musical doesn't pull any punches
when it comes to its judgmentsof people.
It definitely, you know, hasits finger on the pulse of so
many problematic behaviors thateither we as an American society
have, or just societies ingeneral may have, relating to,
(23:45):
you know, to just the constantintake of social media or of the
need to be seen and don't getme wrong, it's important to be
seen.
Speaker 2 (23:56):
Yeah, yeah.
Speaker 3 (23:56):
Right, but the monetary value that's attached
to that maybe is where we get alittle broken right.
And so what I hope is that thedreamers in us get realized
through the course of this show,because really it's about
thinking outside of the box andit's about accepting the what
ifs as the what if they areright now right.
(24:18):
Without any judgment, to justreally be able to dive in and to
say yes to an idea and then letit figure itself out.
Yeah, right, and so I hope that,yes, there are lessons to be
learned in it and there arecertainly moral compasses that
guide the show, but at the endof the day, I think it's really
(24:41):
about the dreamers and acceptingthe dreamer in all of us.
Speaker 2 (24:44):
Absolutely, I 100% agree.
During this whole process, oreven if you watched I'm assuming
you watched the film, what haveyou learned from it, especially
aside from the dreamers andstuff?
What is one thing that didcatch your attention?
Speaker 3 (24:57):
Well, I love that Gene Wilder.
I don't know if you know thisstory, but Gene Wilder, when he
accepted the role, he said hewould only accept it on one
condition that Greenwilder, whenhe accepted the role, he said
(25:19):
he would only accept it on onecondition that he could come out
with a cane and act feeble andold and then somersault into the
body that he has.
And so I'm probably misphrasingit slightly but, he said that he
wouldn't do it unless he hadthat moment, because from that
moment on, you would never knowif he was telling the truth or
not.
Speaker 2 (25:31):
Right.
Speaker 3 (25:31):
And so I like that idea of play, I like that
slightly on edge moment and Ithink that I think it's going to
be really interesting to findthat balance for this show,
because it is kind of dark butit's also kids play.
Yeah, yeah, and so I thinkit'll be fun to kind of find
that teeter teetering point andto really balance on it as much
(25:54):
as possible to pull the audiencein, but then to always make
them laugh at themselves at theend too.
Speaker 2 (26:00):
I see, yeah, yeah.
So I don't know if you couldanswer this fully, but are you
thinking of implementing thatlittle cane scene?
Speaker 3 (26:07):
Oh well, there are certain things that you have to
have in the show because it'swritten into a script and you're
signing licensing agreements.
So once our scripts come inwhich they were shipped today,
oh, awesome.
Thanks to MTI's website, soonce our scripts come in, we'll
be able to verify all the thingsthat we definitely need to keep
(26:30):
, and also sometimes inlicensing agreements, they tell
you certain things that youcan't do.
You have to create things foryourselves as well.
So I'm always a good fan of notgetting sued, so I'll make sure
that I follow those rules too.
Speaker 2 (26:44):
Awesome.
Well, thank you so much forbeing on the show.
I had such a wonderful timecatching up and, especially, I'm
so excited for Charlie and theChocolate Factory that I got so
much information.
And to whoever is listening,jesse, if you could tell us,
when is the tickets released?
Are they already released?
Speaker 3 (27:00):
Yeah, yeah, yeah, so we will probably open up ticket
sales in February, mid-February.
Our show opens on March 7th.
It runs the 7th, 8th, 14th and15th at the Ontario High School
Performing Arts Centre, and allof that information.
I think the best way to findout information about our shows,
(27:21):
unless you're live on campus atOntario High School, is to
follow us on Instagram or TikTokat Jagspotlights.
Speaker 2 (27:30):
Yes, you heard it here.
Folks Grab your tickets whenthey release and there's no
doubt about it.
This production is going to beamazing, especially with the new
technical stuff, and I hope thestudents are ready to rumble
again.
I dislike the time I keepsaying it, but it's making me
excited talking about it.
But thank you so much, jessie,and I appreciate it so much.
Speaker 3 (27:49):
Thank you, Giorgio.
Speaker 1 (27:54):
Thanks for listening to Steps to the Stage Drama
Depart, a 7th Street CommunityTheatre podcast.
Follow us on your favoritepodcast platform and leave us a
review and a five-star rating.
You can also follow us onInstagram or Facebook and
subscribe to our YouTube channel.
Special thanks to ChinoCommunity Theater and Chino
Community Children's Theater fortheir generous support.
(28:16):
Steps to the Stage was createdby Joey Rice and Kirk Lane.
Logo created by Marlee Lane.
Original music by Joey Rice andDevon, your host and producer,
giorgio Haddad.
Engineering producer Joey Rice.
Engineering executive producerKirk Lane.
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