Children’s theatre troupe enthralls local school children

by Jan Janes on Dec 9, 2019

After a full semester of writing and rehearsing, Gavilan College students enrolled in Theatre 2A/2B hit the boards with their own innovations on classic tales. The class presented eight performances, seven to elementary school children and one weekend matinee performance to the public. Theatre 2A/2B is offered every fall semester. Students adapt stories from historical texts, including Aesop’s Fables. Each year the class uses a different collection of stories to create an original production.

In the adaptation of Rumpelstiltskin, the king’s guards must bite a sample to test
each new batch of straw-spun gold.

Desperate to keep her first-born child, the Queen tries to guess the name of the
magical being who helped her win over the king by spinning straw into gold.

Pirates board a ship and try to steal the passengers’ belongings. The lead pirate,
played by Paola San Miguel, discovered one of the passengers was a long lost
acquaintance with a personal connection and a life-saving role.

Fox, played by Khadeejah Haroon, appeared in many stories, often creating mischief.

Children’s Theatre Players

Aishah Al-Suwaidi played sporting roles, a chicken and a messenger. “My favorite role was the messenger in Rumpelstiltskin,” she said. “It had the most lines, and I got to narrate the little scene where Rumpelstiltskin does his dance.”

Raul Alicante first appeared on the Gavilan College stage in Guys & Dolls. This is his second show with Gavilan, and he played a number of roles, including a pirate and a hunter. “I loved playing Jim the Hunter in Lion and Mouse,” he said. “It was cartoony, and in one scene I screamed a lot. The children’s audiences did react when I got scared.”

Nick Anastasi (no photo) has worked as stage manager, moved to acting this semester, and will go back to stage managing next semester. “My favorite role was being the other mouse, and I loved the hat,” he said. “In Lion and Mouse, my colleague mouse would get a lot of audience participation. The biggest thing about this whole class is getting to know everyone, become more than friends, but family, and come together to make the show.”

Jared Beam recalled being in the audience of a children’s theatre showing as a first grader, remembered the very seat he sat in, and was thrilled he was one of the students able to ask a question. “I wanted to know how the lights go on, was it magic?” he said. “My favorite role for this performance is a mix between the king and the rooster. Rooster was very demanding on my voice, squeaking and squawking. The king was suave and pompous, and when the queen shows up the girl changes him.”

Halie Elliott appeared in her first performance with this Gavilan production. “My favorite role was the queen, with a lot of time on stage,” she said. “All of this has been very exciting. Feeling the audience’s reactions kept the energy alive for my character. I got to write stories, Lion and Mouse and Brementown Musicians. Everyone brought something unique that I didn’t think of, and they did a good job embracing what I had in mind, great collaboration.”

Hamzah Haroon, in his first time ever on stage, appeared as Rumpelstiltskin. “I really liked the role,” he said. “I got to be crazy in my body and voice, show off and act silly on stage. I love the way the audience reacted.”

Khadeejah Haroon played the fox and a robber, and thought it was a toss up which was her favorite. “The fox is a whole, fleshed out character in a lot of different stories. Susy the robber was an action role, and I have a no fake falling policy when I’m chased around the stage. Fox is a big presence on stage, not as a comedic character, but a character that helps drive the plot forward.”

Yusuf Haroon was in the children’s theatre class last fall and came back again to take it for fun. He also encouraged three of his siblings to join him. “I was only in half the play,” he said. “And of the supporting roles I took, Coyote was my favorite role. I’ve been in theater for a year and only portrayed serious roles. I got to play this comical character, and I choreographed the chase scene at the end, and with every show it got a little crazier.”

Alezay Rodriguez performed in Guys & Dolls last spring, and she said her favorite role this semester with children’s theatre was the goat. “All my characters have been sweet and nice,” she said. “The goat had to be mean and aggressive. It’s not something I’m used to, and I’m never mean or angry towards anyone. This cast has become my second family.”

Paola San Miguel played a variety of roles and liked all of them. “All the roles were eccentric, like the pirate and the ranchera,” she said. “I received the best audience responses playing the ranchera. The Spanish speaking students would come up to me, excited to see a character speaking Spanish in a performance. Plus, everyone has a mom who yells at them. I love pirates, and it’s fun to play authoritative, comedic roles.”

Kassandra Zarate enjoyed playing the mouse. “Gus the mouse was a fun role,” she said. “I was able to have fun with the audience and be able to direct the kids and see their responses.”

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