Alex Carr's The Jaguars' Spot column for Wed., Apr. 21, 2010

A Mid, uh … Spring … Night’s Dream!

          VCHS Drama teacher John Ward and his class have a production coming up that should be a real treat! The play in question is none other than… what was it called? Something about a dream in the middle of summer… oh, right! A Midsummer Night’s Dream, written by that William Shakespeare guy. For the sake of teenage attention spans, the school will be performing a 55-minute version of the original three-hour long play. I talked to Ward about it and he assured me that the play still flows smoothly and is very interesting. “Every word in the play was written by the man himself,” said Ward.

          Another thing Ward prides himself in is his decision on choosing a unique theme for the play. Since the play has so much to do with love, Ward decided that the 60’s would be a perfect fit.

          “I really love how the theme has worked out,” Ward noted. “For any of you out there in the audience, don’t be surprised to hear a little Beatles music playing in the background.”

          I talked with a few kids in the Ward’s drama class and they all told me they really love the process. Francisco Moncada, a senior in the Drama class, plays the part of Bottom. He has been in many plays with Ward and says he has loved every one of them.

          “Whenever I do one of Mr. Ward’s plays,” said Moncada, “I always learn something new about acting or the mechanics of how a play should look and work. One thing is for sure; every time I do a play I become a better actor.”

          The kids say this is going to be one heck of a play, so try not to miss it. Tickets are on sale for $5. There will be three 6:30 p.m. performances in the Maxine on Thursday, April 22; Friday, April 23; and Saturday, April 24.

Tell me about it!:

          A few people have told me they thought it was really cool that I got to go on a trip over Spring Break with Principal McCowan and wondered if I was getting some that was some kind of special treatment. The truth is, I just signed for it through a friend of mine who was taking the trip with Boy Scout Troop 619. It wasn’t until the morning of the trip that I felt the familiar slap on the back of Ron McCowan. After I had finished spitting out most of my breakfast burrito (he’s really strong!), I was even more happy I had signed up because he really is a neat guy to hang out with.

          So, there’s no insider treatment going on here. If you would like to go on a camping trip with McCowan, sign up for the next one. Who knows? You might get lucky, he and his boys (McBoys, I’m assuming) might be on the trip as well!

          Got a great item for this column? Tell me about it! Catch me on campus or go to my web page and shoot me an e-mail (www.carrfamily.com/alex).

          Read all of San Diego Press Club award-winner Alex Carr's columns at www.carrfamily.com.