Director's Note
2020 has definitely not been a normal year. For me - and I'd expect this to be the same for others as well - the past year has felt more like decade. There were celebrity deaths like that of Kobe Bryant, nautral disasters like the terrible Australian bushfires, and it seemed like the U.S. was about to start World War 3. And this all happened before the U.S. went into a national emergency in March due to COVID-19.
Yet, despite gonig through events of biblical proportions, there was still one constant that I could rely on: the theatre company. As soon as the schools went virtual, Mrs. Little and Ms. Huey announced plans to perform 10 Ways to Survive a Quarantine. We were able to perform Shrek the Musical as a virtual concert, and even inducted a whole new batch of Thespians into our troupe. Even in a year like 2020, the company was still there to keep morale up.
That is why a production like this is so important. Being the first show of the year, I wanted to keep the spirit of the company alive. We were always known for being a welcoming space where anybody who had the passion to perform could, so a virtual cabaret is the perfect start to the year. We had so much participation, not just from current theatre kids, but from students in their first year with the company. It excites me that, despite everything that's happened, the spirit of theatre is still alive amongst our school.
Another core element of our company was our dedication to helping and improving our community. In a normal year, we would host clothing and toy drives constantly throughout the year. During our musical, our company partners with a charity organization so that we can help raise money and awareness during the production season. Due to our current circumstances, I thought it was a perfect time to do it again with this cabaret. It makes me so excited that so many kids in the company were excited to take part in this with me, like when everyone was volunteering to sing in a virtual karaoke session, or when Mrs. Little and Ms. Huey themselves decided to perform a duet (which is long overdue for any production, if you ask me). Especially when we're partnering with such great organizations like JF Party Dragon and JBJ's Soul Kitchen, I hope that this production can do good for our community.
This entire show, I think, is just the perfect representation of our company as a whole. We have a bunch of teens who have something they want to show off, showing it off. And we have everyone doing this with helping the community in mind. I could not describe the Nautical Stars Theatre Compay better if I tried. So I hope that when you see these kids putting everything they can in their performances, you enjoy it just as much as I did putting it together.
Michael Tresvalles, Director
