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March 2, 2010
Dessert theatre provides new experience for drama club by Mark Rieth
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Without an auditorium and without money, the drama department is still able to present Dessert Theatre—a combination of monologues, improvisions, a short musical performance, and desserts to compliment the experience. According to senior Christian Murphy, a performer in Dessert Theatre, producing this play has been challenging. “Because the play is a bunch of differ-
2. PHOTOS BY MAX PITTMAN
1. Freshman Vicky Artaza performs from a scene in “The Importance of Being Earnest,” by Oscar Wilde. 2. Seniors Eric Beack and Jayda Knight perform improv during scene changes.
ent events put together, each part only rehearsed once a week. So instead of everybody rehearsing together, we had to break it up, which meant we didn’t get as much time to practice,” Murphy said. Senior Sara Hill, co-president of Drama Club, believes lack of unity was a result of the split rehearsals. “It was hard to feel connected with the rest of the cast because, unlike other plays, we almost never rehearsed together,” Hill said. Because the auditorium is under construction, the drama department had to find a different location for the play. “Not having a stage to perform on makes things difficult. A week before the show, we were sure we were going to perform in the bingo room, but then we switched to the Redondo Beach Playhouse,” Hill said. “Theatres are specifically designed to help you be seen and heard. An empty hall would not have been conductive to audio and visual entertainment.” All rehearsals for Dessert Theatre were completely extracurricular. On top of that, the drama department has a new teacher, Justin Baldridge. According to Murphy, this change in leadership is something that the drama students will have to adjust to, if they haven’t already.
“The fact that there’s a whole new drama teacher who’s introducing a whole new drama program is one obstacle,” Murphy said. Still, Murphy believes Baldridge works well with his students and is up to the challenge of leading drama. “I don’t think the drama depart-
“It was hard to feel connected with the rest of the cast, because unlike other plays, we almost never rehearsed together.” —Sara Hill ment under Mr. Baldridge is any less organized, even though we don’t have an auditorium and many of the veteran performers aren’t in the drama class. Mr. Baldridge is a very professional and organized director.” According to Baldridge, the $7,000 of debt has limited what the drama department has been able to produce. “We’ve only been able to come out with minimal productions and not any real plays,” Baldridge said. “It also means more money out of the students’ pockets.”
Church opens skate park
Beale makes over 300 visits to Disneyland by Casey Smith
Senior William Clark Beale arrives at the Disneyland entrance. A man scans his pass and he walks through the gates. The familiar sight brings him joy. As Beale and his friends pass under the Main Street Railroad, he tells his party members that he is off to get Fastpasses for Space Mountain. Shortly after, Beale heads straight to Sleeping Beauty’s Castle, where he starts off his day in Fantasyland. Beale says that he is not obsessed in any way, but he does love Disneyland. Although he has lost count of how many times exactly he has been to the theme park, through a series of calculations he can average it out to be more than 300 visits. This love for Disneyland began when Beale was in second grade. His mother, who works the night shift at a hospital where she is a registered nurse, would come home tired day after day. In order for her to get the sleep she needed, Beale’s father wanted to come up with someway to get everyone out of the house. “My dad would take us to museums, parks, zoos and such every weekend until we eventually caught on to the idea of getting Disneyland Annual Passes,” Beale said. Beale and his family grew to love Disneyland like it was a second home. “When the kids and my husband got the Disney passes he could take them on a Saturday or Sunday when I was sleeping off the
night shift,” Adrienne Beale said. “I would know that they were some place that everybody liked having fun.” Since getting his of passes almost eleven years ago, Beale has made it a custom to visit at least two or three times a month. He has even come so far as to see wait times, how crowds are moving, and even view live webcam feeds of going on in the resort from his phone. He has also named his phone after “Bucky,” a puppet that is no longer in use at the park. Beale’s peculiar ways are not out of the ordianary, according to his sister. “I think its pretty neat how he knows so many things. And out of all the weirdness, I think he’s too awesome to be called weird or stupid. He‘s a really cool dude and I love him,” Beale’s sister Evelyn said. Beale also understands that giving your name out to people isn’t the greatest idea, but in this case he reconsiders. “I’ve had many cast members recognize me from my many trips,” Beale said. “I am on a first-name-basis with quite a few cast members.” One would think that after so many trips to Disneyland, Beale would have many ‘privileges’ or ‘opportunities’ that other visitors at the park don’t. “I can’t really say I get any ‘special privileges,’ but I do tend to... have things work out in my favor,” Beale said. “For example, depending on who is running the Tiki Juice
Bar, I may get a slightly-larger-than-averagethough-not-so-large-as-to-be-conspicuousto-the-leads-who-may-walk-by-at-any-moment Dole Whip.” Even though he could take things like this to his advantage, Beale reveals that he’d much rather be part of the “streetmosphere”. This includes being involved with peformances when a member of the audience is pulled onto the stage, as well as entertainment around the park like musicians, jugglers and such. He also enjoys being a helpful member although he is not part of the staff. “My favorite thing about touring the parks is seeing and helping everyone else, both in and out of my circle of friends, both cast member and guest, that fraternal nature,” Beale said. “That ability to talk to anybody present and to help them have fun; that is my Disneyland.” Beale’s regular visits to Disneyland may seem like an addiction to others, but he doesn’t think of it that way. “I wouldn’t call it an obsession,” Beale said. “I can go without it for a couple months and still be ok.” Although this may be true, he admits to never being tired of the resort. Beale believes that every time he goes, there is just another combination of attractions to experiences, as well as something new to learn about the history of Disneyland. Everyone definitely has their own sense
by Victoria Balding
PHOTO BY DANIEL FALLON
Senior William Clark Beale wears his Disneyland essentials including his pins and anual pass. In his hands, Beale holds some of the many tickets to Disneyland he has purchased. He has visited Disneyland an estimated 300 times.
of escape. Some resort to drugs and alcohol while others tend to turn their heads toward music, dancing, sports and others things of the sort. Beale on the other hand looks at things from a different perspective. “Me, I’m a Renaissance man, I have a variety of interests and fields that I pursue and participate in,” Beale said. “Disneyland is just like music, or drama, or drugs, or humor, or any of the other myriad things that are part of your life. Disneyland is that part of me.”
Rowe uses skateboarding sponsorship to give back to community by Josh Fogelson
Junior Cody Rowe is so dedicated to skateboarding, that when he needed a half pipe to skate on, he built one in his backyard. It is a dedication like that which has earned Rowe a sponsor. Rowe is sponsored by Soul Performance, a local skate shop in Redondo Beach. He has always skated, but starting in sixth grade his interest in the sport grew. By seventh grade, he had sent a video to
Soul Performance showing off some of his tricks. “At the time no one really skated that much and [the sport] was starting to pick up momentum,” Rowe said. “I had a lousy tape by today’s standards, but I guess I made it.” It was not pure talent that earned Rowe his sponsorship though. Sheryl Brog, wife of Soul Performance owner, Mike Brog, said Cody had something special that oth-
PHOTO BY JON MARTIN
Junior Cody Rowe does an indie grab. He is currenty sponsored and helps spread a positive attitude among his fellow skate boarders. His sponsors appreciate his positive attitde the most.
er kids did not. “He’s not the kind of kid who tries something once and then gives up. He puts his mind to it and he’s going to keep doing it until he gets it, and not just right but superb,” Brog said. Rowe’s drive and dedication to skateboarding has kept him the sponsor to this day. As part of his sponsor, Rowe receives free clothing with the Soul Performance logo on them, which he wears when skating around and to the occasional competition. The sponsorship is more then just an agreement to wear clothing though. Rowe is good friends with Sheryl and Mike Brog, and can call Soul Performance his home. “If I’m ever desperate they will support me any way they can,” Rowe said. Rowe is not sponsored to win competitions and just purely advertise, but instead to act as a good role model in the community. “He’s just a good representative. Not just in skating, but in how to be a good member of society. He could be the best skater in town or in the state and have a bad attitude, but we’re not going to sponsor you, no matter how good you are,” Brog said. “It’s the overall picture, and he’s the overall guy.” Rowe is against large, corporate skateboard companies, preferring smaller, family-run businesses, like Soul Performance. “[Corporate shops] are trying to make money off of skateboarding,” Rowe said.
Hill agrees that the debt has required more personal contributions from cast members. “We haven’t had to increase the ticket prices, but we’re being more creative with the costumes and the set,” Hill said. “In Dessert Theatre, the furniture is either from a member of the cast, from Mr. Baldridge’s classroom, or from the playhouse itself. All the costumes are from our own closets except for the hats in the chorus line.” According to Murphy, Dessert Theatre allowed students to present their talent for acting and also help to raise much needed money for the drama department. Murphy expects the performance to be a crowd-pleaser and to run smoothly. “As far as performance, I predict the production to be a success. We have talented actors in Dessert Theatre. I hope for the best as far as revenue goes, but it’s not as certain. It’s difficult to predict the sizes of the audiences,” Murphy said. Hill remains optimistic, believing that the performance will generate a substantial amount of revenue and help the drama club. “With Dessert Theare and Caberet, Drama is hoping to be done with debt,” Hill said.
“It’s owned by people who don’t skate. They just make the money. They view it as some kind of hobby, like the yo-yo.” Skateboarding is more then just a hobby to Rowe, which is one reason he enjoys being sponsored by Soul Performance, a company that is more interested in skateboarding then in just making money. “One of the reasons we have this skate shop here is to be a positive part of the community and give these kids a place to come and to learn,” Brog said. Because of his dislike of corporate skateboard companies, Rowe doesn’t like to call his arrangement a sponsor. He says sponsors are associated with large companies. “I guess you can call it a sponsor, but it’s more I rep the shop,” Rowe said. One of the reasons Rowe is so dedicated to skateboarding is the relaxing effect it has on him. “You come home from a hard day of school and you need something to unwind and I find skateboarding is that thing I unwind to,” Rowe said. Rowe also enjoys being a part of the larger skateboarding community. “I know a lot of people,” Rowe said. “When I’m skating around I’ll meet fellow skaters.” Whatever the reasons are for Rowe’s continued love of skateboarding, his attachment to the sport has no end in sight. Skateboarding has become something more then just a hobby for Rowe “It’s a lifestyle,” he said.
Some people may view the Hope Chapel as just another church or a commonly known place to skate, but to senior Gabe Martenson it’s a place where he gets a chance to give back to his community and help spread faith. Martenson has been attending Hope Chapel for his entire life and is currently a part of the youth group. Twice a week he volunteers at the skate park, which his church created, in Hermosa Beach. “The church owns the building, so when the lease was up we decided it was a great opportunity to find a way to give back to the community,” Martenson said. He believes the skate park offers a safe atmosphere for teens. “Teens can feel comfortable to hang out with friends or do homework in a safe environment,” he said. Although the skate park is not strictly for religion, the staff would like to open up the skaters to new ideas to help the youth incorporate faith into their daily lives. According to junior Jordan Garcia-Perez, who has been skating at Hope Chapel for the past couple months, the skate park does attract more people to the Hope Chapel. He attended a mass there himself. “I think in a way they do lure in skaters into religion,” Garcia-Perez said. Even though some people view it as just a place to hang out, the people managing it hope for something more. He wanted to show kids a place where they feel comfortable and at home, and possibly become interested with the church itself. “If we are patient and wait maybe we can show skaters that youth group is fun,” he said. Although the skate park is not strictly for religion the staff would like to open up the skaters to new ideas to help the youth incorporate faith into their daily lives. “Kids will not only come in to skate and have fun, but will also give teens beliefs that schools don’t provide,” Skate Ministry Director Clarence Mazza said. He believes that through this teen center he will be able to share his faith with more adolescents. “Last year we took over twenty-five skaters through the entire book of John and I was able to establish personal relationships with some of the skaters who are now my close friends and attend church with me,” Mazza said. He hopes to continue making personal relationships and more close friends through the skate park. Mazza came up with the idea when he noticed an increase in the number of skaters in the South Bay. The rapidly growing rate of skaters has Mazza separating middle school skating times from the high schools skating times as an attempt to control the crowds. He is hoping he will be able to help many skaters through the skate park. “As a church we take in anybody and with most people using drugs and with broken families we need to spread more knowledge of Jesus to people and give them a deeper meaning in their life, heart and soul,” Mazza said.