Staging ‘Godspell’ takes a miracle

PLAY PREVIEW /// ‘Godspell’



BACK STAGE—Providing tech support are, seated, Reid Chobanian, OCS director of media production, front, and Bradley Gosnell, co-producer/co-director. Standing is Ros Allen-Enciso, co-producer/co-director. Courtesy photo

BACK STAGE—Providing tech support are, seated, Reid Chobanian, OCS director of media production, front, and Bradley Gosnell, co-producer/co-director. Standing is Ros Allen-Enciso, co-producer/co-director. Courtesy photo

Grit. Tenacity. Innovation.

That is what it has taken to bring the high school performing arts rendition of “Godspell Jr.” to the stage, even a virtual one.

Like every aspect of life, COVID-19 has affected the performing arts, from shutting down Broadway in New York City to eliminating K-12 school productions nationwide.

But the show must go on, and Oaks Christian School performing arts was determined that it would, despite several close-call cancellations, lockdowns and delayed production schedules.

“We searched for a way to produce a show innovatively in the midst of all the critical COVID safety protocols,” said Ros Allen Enciso, the school’s theater director. “Our hearts wanted to give this experience to our students who are so hungry to connect on campus and connect with the performing arts.”

Some of the adaptations included moving rehearsals outdoors to the high school quad, prerecording student voices, and wearing masks and social distancing.

The tech staff created a film set on the quad and built lighting towers and used camera operators and sound engineers for a four-camera film shoot.

The show was shot completely outdoors with no live audience and will be streamed for viewers May 14, 15, 16, 21 and 22.

Sophomore Caleb Polaha plays Jesus, and he feels the novelty of the situation.

“Coming off a year where we have all been in our houses and quarantined and then we just jump right into this kind of show has been pretty wild. We haven’t seen some of our friends for a while, and now we are just getting used to being back (on campus) and also into rehearsals. This has been an extremely unique and rare experience,” he said.

The physicality of working completely outdoors in the elements and with the noise and visual distractions of a high school campus was something to contend with, said Bradley Gosnell, producer-director.

“One of the biggest challenges was the space itself,” he said. “It’s cold, it’s hot, there are people walking around. In a theater you are inside with closed walls. So trying to create a sense of energy and momentum in the quad and relational connection with people who are feet apart was definitely daunting.

“We were also dealing with a tight schedule, and that pressure kept us moving.”

Despite any challenges and even because of them, he believes the cast has drawn close and pulled together for what he feels “will be a really great show.”

Building community in the cast and for the audience is exactly what Allen-Enciso hopes will result from all the hard work and effort of this production.

“‘Godspell,’ at its core, is an uplifting story centered on building a community built on Christ’s teachings about love,” she said. “It is a refreshing story to enjoy and to be reminded of the importance of our community, of hope and of love—especially now when we all have collectively gone through such challenging times.”

The production team is led by Allen-Enciso and co-director Gosnell, Class of 2010, and includes sound engineer Ben Adams, Class of 2003, who was the first OCS student to cross the graduation stage. Joining them are musical director Edward Rouse and technical director David Alexander.

Visit oakschristian.org/calendar.