playbill vip

Welcome to the first show of the 2022/2023 season. We are so pleased to offer a season without the restrictions we have faced over the last three years. Last year our season focused on welcoming back people to the theatre. However, this year the season was built around the Desmond Tutu quote "HOPE is being able to see that there is LIGHT despite all of the DARKNESS". There has been a lot of darkness for many of my students and their families and it was my hope to create a season that focused on hope. The season was designed around the idea that despite the dark moments there is always a light at the end of the tunnel-a light we all could use right now

The Fullerton Union High School Academy of the Arts has never stayed away from difficult, controversial, and powerful works of theatre. In the past we have presented Nine, Cabaret, Sweeney Todd, and Mother Courage and Her Children to name a few. These works provide challenging material for students of the arts to be able to explore the complexity of humanity and to prepare them for the real world where theatre can sometimes have no limits. The Wolves is no different.   

There are very few plays written for a cast of females ages 14-18. Let face it, in this theatre program the females out number the males three to one. I wanted to choose a show that spoke to the issues that female students are going through but at the same time show that they are no different than their male counterparts. The characters in this production deal with politics, human rights, relationships, and many personal tribulations. All of which mirror many of the same issues our students are facing today. I am so proud of this production and its largely female production team including the actors, stage managers, and directors. 

What you will see tonight is exactly what is happening as students practice on any sports field at any high school in the United States. The conversations are sometimes shocking to hear, profound, and many times "practices" are the only chance students have to express themselves to their peers. 

The Wolves was originally produced Off-Broadway at The Duke on 42nd Street by The Playwrights Realm in association with New York Stage & Film and Vassar's Powerhouse Theatre season. The play opened on August 29, 2016, officially on September 11, 2016 and closed on September 29, 2016. The play re-opened at The Duke on November 29, 2016 and closed on December 29, 2016 with additional support from commercial producers Scott Rudin and Eli Bush. It subsequently returned to an Off-Broadway engagement at Lincoln Center Theater’s Mitzi Newhouse Theater on November 1, 2017 and closed on January 7, 2018. The Wolves was directed by Lila Neugebauer.

I would like to thank the following people: Mykaela Sterris (FUHS Class of 2016) and Elizabeth Gimple (Class of 2017) for the beautiful direction and mentorship you gave this team over the last few months. Yae Eun Han for taking the costuming lead on this production. Stage Manager's Janae Pease and Karissa Lentz for all of your organization, care and leadership. Jett Shields thank you for your leadership and excitement about making this production happen. The Cast of The Wolves for all you did to make this a great way to get back into the theatre and create. The Crew for all you do to help us tell stories from the darkness. The Designers thank you for your passion and creativity. Lastly, the FUHS Drama Booster Club and Parents for your fearless and tireless support of this EDUCATIONAL THEATRE program.

Michael J. Despars

Theatre Arts, FUHS Academy of the Arts

Chair, FUHS Academy of the Arts

California Educational Theatre Association, Past President