By SARAH SHMERLING | Editor-in-Chief
Theatre Palisades Teen will present six performances of “Ride the Cyclone” (High School Edition) at Pierson Playhouse, beginning Thursday, July 25.
The one-weekend-only show—directed by Lara Ganz—features a cast of 13 “youth actors” in grades seven through 10: Zoe Baserga-Rudd, Quinn Calof, Mary Kate Culbertson, Callum Ganz, Mireille Ganz, Madenn Garcia, Sabrina Hall, Sophia Harelick, Liam Irving, Emma McCarthy, Shayden Satuloff, Sydney Schwartz and Scarlett Shelton.
“In this funny and outlandish cult musical, the lives of six teenagers from a Canadian chamber choir are cut short in a freak accident aboard a roller coaster,” read a synopsis provided by TPTeen. “When they awake in purgatory, the students meet The Amazing Karnak, a mechanical fortune-teller who offers the chance for one lucky teen to return to life. As the teens compete to prove their worthiness, they sing and dance their way through a series of hilarious and touching performances, revealing their deepest hopes and fears.”
The show is choreographed by Aaron Jung and Sydney Diamond, with gaba as music director and Susan Jackman and Jillian Leary as producers.
Lara said the inspiration for bringing the show to fruition began on a road trip last summer to Lake Tahoe with her husband, Jon Ganz, and two teenagers. Lara said she wanted to play her own music, but her daughter, Mireille, was “insistent” that they listen to the soundtrack of an “offbeat cult musical” that she recently discovered.
“I was like, ugh … OK,” Lara recalled. “But then, I thought, ‘Wait, this is actually really catchy.’ The songs were so funny and the lyrics were so clever.”
Lara—who had recently lost her father—said she was sobbing by the end of the soundtrack, that the story and lyrics gave her a “deep sense of gratitude for this time alone with her family.”
“It just hits you, this profound moment,” she said, “of taking a look around and being present for the simple moments, accepting the good in your life—being grateful for all of it. Even the dark parts.”
Performances will take place on Thursday, July 25, at 7 p.m.; Friday, July 26, at 6:30 and 8:30 p.m.; Saturday, July 27, at 4 and 7 p.m.; and Sunday, July 28, at 2 p.m.
Tickets are $22 for general admission, $17 for seniors and students. All performances take place at Pierson Playhouse, located at 941 Temescal Canyon Road.
“Adult audiences may be hesitant at first, when they hear what the story is about—six kids who die on a roller coaster,” Jung said. “But listen deeper and you’ll understand why the teens are connecting with this story and how it connects to their lives as well.”
TPTeen—which Ganz said was designed to create space for high school-age performers who want to continue with Theatre Palisades Youth—performed its inaugural show in February 2023: “High School Musical Jr.” Performances have also included “Les Misérables.”
For more information or to purchase tickets, visit theatrepalisades.org/youth.
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