OCSA :: Stars in the Making

So the other night, Monica asked if I'd read and give her feedback on two short plays that she had written because she was going to submit them to see if one of them might be selected for Orange County School of the Art's (OCSA) annual Play Fest.

When I read them, I was literally moved to tears. SUCH characters. SUCH smart dialogue. I gave minor technical feedback ... but mainly, I told Monica that I wanted her to eventually develop the short plays into full-length plays because I couldn't wait to see the entire story of both plays unfold. Finally, I offered her reassurance that if the selection committee had half a brain, one of her plays would definitely be selected for the Play Fest. I'm her mom. I'm allowed to say things like that. :) And guess what? It turns out that Monica submitted 3 short plays and the one I didn't read got selected! And so when it was time to go to the Play Fest this week, I was curious what I'd see being played out on stage since I hadn't had the chance to read it beforehand.

Her play was titled Scar and she cast two of her friends (above) to play the two characters in her play. The actors did a phenomenal job as they brought to life the message of the play, which had something to do with Harry Potter and a lot to do regarding the pain of growing up.

It. Was. So. Good.

The play reminded me that no matter who becomes our rescue fantasy hero that we idealize, at the end of the day, there is no one who can rescue us except ourselves. And no matter how much we want to be in someone else's story, it's our story that we get to construct ... with experiences both good and bad, sometimes wonderful, sometimes tragic.

Do you see the star in the photo above? It's the new logo for OCSA. It takes a minute but once you see it, you see it.

Another play that was selected and performed at Play Fest was written by Rachel Do, one of Monica's best friends. Shown below is Monica, Rachel, and Antonia (another one of Monica's best friends). Rachel's play was titled Your Epidermus is Showing and it was also fantastic. Really excellent writing and great character development. 

At the end of the night, they had all the playwrights go up on stage to take a bow. I look at the photo of these young people and think to myself that these are our leaders. These are the people who will be doing amazing things in the years ahead like writing plays, curing diseases, accepting Oscars, and helping people. True stars in the making.