By Khalida Sarwari
Cast members of the beloved Broadway musical Wicked will share the stage with three Westmont drama students next month for a one-night benefit performance in Palo Alto.
The show, “Making Magic/Defying Gravity,” will raise funds for the National Thespian Scholarship, awarded annually to student actors on both the state and national levels. This year, Westmont senior Amanda Wallace took home a $1,000 scholarship at the state conference in March, said Jeff Bengford, director of Westmont’s performing arts department.
On the evening of June 4, members of the Wicked cast will travel to Palo Alto on their one night off that week from a four-week engagement in Sacramento that kicked off in May.
Westmont was chosen as one of two high schools to participate in the benefit show, Bengford said. The other is Palo Alto High School. Wicked’s production staff selected the schools based on their theater department achievements.
“They saw us and liked the quality of the shows we did,” Bengford said.
When the staff, some of whom were former high school thespians themselves, asked whether Westmont would be interested in teaming up with the Wicked cast, Bengford was all for it, except he wasn’t sure if Westmont’s 210-seat theater would be big enough for such an event. It was decided the benefit would be held at the larger Haymarket Theater on the Palo Alto High School campus.
Participating in the show will be seniors Rachel Graves, 18, of Campbell and Marissa Ramirez, 18, of San Jose; and sophomore Nima Rakhshanifar, 16, of Campbell.
“I’m thrilled to be selected to participate in this benefit for the National Thespian Society and stoked to get the chance to meet, rehearse and then perform with the actors from Wicked,” said Graves.
The Palo Alto show will mark the third such benefit for the Wicked performers, following previous stints in Los Angeles and Portland.
“Working with the folks from Wicked is going to rock our students’ world,” said Bengford. “They will learn so much in a very short amount of time, and this experience will change their lives.
“The audience is going to love seeing our kids singing and dancing with the pros,” he added.
The benefit show will be held on June 4 at 7 p.m. Tickets are $15 and are available online at www.westmont drama.com and also at the door on the evening of the show. All proceeds will go toward the thespian scholarship fund.
In addition to musical performances, the evening will include a question-and-answer session with Wicked production stage manager Jason Daunter and Disney vice president Matt Conover. They will share their journey from high school thespians to working theater professionals.
