Elizabeth Blust (left) and her daughter Cassandra perform together in the California Youth Conservatory Theatre production of \u201cThe Wiz.\u201d (Courtesy of David Pierce)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\nElizabeth Blust learned about CYC after reading an ad in the Mission Times Courier. \u201cIn 2013, I happened to see an advertisement for \u2018Les Miserables\u2019 auditions,\u201d she said. \u201cI thought my daughters should sign up for the staging, but I read that all ages could be a part of the musical. This is our 11th show that one or more of us have worked on with CYC.\u201d<\/p>\n
Kira Blust respects the fact that professional actors are mentors to ensemble members.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt really is a training company,\u201d she said. \u201cYou can learn more about acting at CYC.\u201d<\/p>\n
Some of the biggest challenges Elizabeth Blust encounters are singing several of the energetic musical numbers.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m usually a high soprano, but I am singing lower in this version,\u201d she said. \u201cI can sing opera for five hours straight, but this musical has been difficult for me at times. Although the tunes have been really challenging, it\u2019s also been a lot of fun.\u201d<\/p>\n
Besides training, Kira Blust is equally impressed with the quality of the players.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s a really great group and I love getting to share the experience with them,\u201d she said. \u201cI love being an assistant stage manager.\u201d<\/p>\n
The original dialogue for the 1975 Broadway rendition was modernized at the La Jolla Playhouse\u2019s revival in 2006 and for the acclaimed 2015 NBC television special. However, the book won\u2019t be altered significantly at the Horton Plaza theater. \u201cWe haven\u2019t taken too many liberties with the script,\u201d Elizabeth Blust said. \u201cThere might be a couple of tweaks here and there.\u201d<\/p>\n
In an adventure full of uplifting musical numbers, several melodies connected strongly with the family. \u201c\u2019Brand New Day\u2019 is one of my favorites,\u201d Cassandra Blust said.<\/p>\n
Ironically, Elizabeth Blust enjoys The Scarecrow\u2019s (Jayden Ponder) songs, including the darkly funny, \u201cYou Can\u2019t Win.\u201d The Scarecrow is forced to croon the melody after cruel crows start to bully him.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s a dismal message for such an upbeat number,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
Like recent CYC events, live music plays a big part of the evening. Responsible for the R&B sound is music director, Tamara Paige.<\/p>\n
\u201cHaving musicians makes the night more accessible and exciting,\u201d Elizabeth Blust said.<\/p>\n
After the Oz odyssey closes, Cassandra Blust hopes to continue working with CYC.<\/p>\n
![\"screen-shot-2016-09-16-at-9-17-11-am\"](\"data:image\/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAAAAACH5BAEKAAEALAAAAAABAAEAAAICTAEAOw==\")
<\/a>\u201cI still would like to audition for more shows when the run of \u2018The Wiz\u2019 is over,\u201d she said.<\/p>\nFor Elizabeth Blust, the most important thing about \u201cThe Wiz\u201d is that audiences have a good time watching Dorothy on her fantastical quest.<\/p>\n
\u201cI think it\u2019s going to be really fun,\u201d she said. \u201cThe choreography, costumes, and actors will be very exciting to see onstage.\u201d<\/p>\n
Kids and parents should be amazed by the craft and creativity in the magical fantasy eve. With so much CYC experience, the San Carlos family is most likely going to be featured in future theatrical events.<\/p>\n
\u2014Dave Dixon is a freelance theater and film writer. Reach him at daviddixon0202@gmail.com.<\/em><\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"por David Dixon<\/p>","protected":false},"author":819,"featured_media":228990,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_seopress_robots_primary_cat":"11558","_seopress_titles_title":"A family affair at California Youth Conservatory Theatre","_seopress_titles_desc":"","_seopress_robots_index":"","jnews-multi-image_gallery":[],"jnews_single_post":[],"jnews_primary_category":[],"jnews_social_meta":[],"jnews_override_counter":[],"footnotes":""},"categories":[11549,11547,11558,11551,11550],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-228989","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-arts-entertainment","category-features","category-mission-times-courier","category-news","category-top-stories"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/228989","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/819"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=228989"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/228989\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/228990"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=228989"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=228989"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=228989"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
![\"whiz_kidswebtop\"](\"https:\/\/missiontimescourier.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/09\/Whiz_Kidswebtop.jpg\")
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