The theater department hosted one-act plays, which are plays with one act, by theater 1 class and theatrics in the cafeteria yesterday from 6:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m., a two-hour session. Admission tickets were priced at $5 with all proceeds going to the Theater Boosters, a parent and community organization that supports the theater program through fundraising initiatives for its student performers.
The showcase alternated between two-person acts and ensemble pieces. The first play featured two actresses fighting over a boy, followed by a large-cast performance about the positives of high school. The third centered on a dispute over stolen artistic merit, and the finale showed a couple solving the mystery of a broken vase. Each performance ran 10–20 minutes, with a brief intermission midway through the evening.
For the performers, the showcase marked a significant milestone. One of them was freshman and theater student Marissa Gonzalez, who eagerly anticipated her debut on stage and experiencing the rush of live theater for the first time.
“We’ve had rehearsals for other productions, like the musical, but this is my first play in theatre 1, so this is a really good experience for me—my first play,” Gonzalez said.
Fellow freshman and theater student Sophia Aguilar said the high school humor of the play helped both students and adults connect with the performance.
“I think it’s just an overall funny play, making fun of the stereotypes of high school and letting adults in the audience relive those moments, thinking, ‘Oh, this is what I went through in high school.’ It’s just an overall funny play,” Aguilar said.
Theater director, Kimberly Segura, is most excited to witness their growth and said that moments like these help measure how well students are applying classroom lessons to live performance.
“This is a really good gauge for them to see if the things that they’re learning in class are actually working and being responded to by an audience,” Segura said.
Behind the scenes, junior and student director Kaitlyn Liang helped shape the production. She said much of the work the audience never sees played a major role in bringing the show together.
“We put in so much time both in school and outside of school into putting this production together. Whether that’s running lines together, writing, directing or even blocking scenes. There’s so much that happens on and off the stage,” Liang said.
More than anything, Liang hopes the audience recognizes the cast’s passion.
“We really love our craft, so getting the opportunity to perform and direct for these people is an amazing opportunity. Every time… Every time the audience laughs or reacts to any of the lives, it brings us so much joy,” Liang said.
Audience members felt that passion as well. Brenda Estrada, parent of cast member Bella Estrada, said the show’s themes of honesty and growth resonated with families.
“As parents, we also make mistakes. So I felt that it really touched a lot of the parents and also the students as well because they tend to lie sometimes. But I think it really hit everyone’s heart,” Estrada said.
Elizabeth Hailey, a recent high school graduate (from another school) and former theater student, attended to support her father’s students and said she was inspired by the performers’ commitment.
“It’s just inspiring to see people take that chance of, okay, we’re just gonna put on a show, if anything happens, we’re just gonna keep going, move forward,” Hailey said.
She added that the showcase reminded her of the sense of community that theater can create.
“Even if you’re not performing, that audience, you’re able to connect with them. Whether it’s from relating to the scene itself or just being able to be like, ‘Oh my god, I know that person, they did that,’” Hailey said.
If the night proved anything, it’s that giving students space to create turns potential into progress. They stepped up, the audience responded, and together they shared laughter and stories about the high school years.
