CHS Students to Perform a Classic Favorite

By Misty Cryer

At the CHS Performing Arts Center, Carlsbad High School students will be adding their touch to the performance of “Little Shop of Horrors.” From acting to vocals, with lots of preparation of the setting and props, these students are geared up to deliver a memorable production of this classic horror/comedy musical.

Performances are scheduled for 6:30 p.m. on March 6 and 2 p.m. and 6:30 p.m. on March 7.

“This is my fifth lead,” said Kaia Dolan, a senior at CHS. She stars as Seymour Kreiborn, the florist’s clerk, and hero of the story.

Starring as Audrey, Seymour’s secret love, is CHS senior Kamaeli Leon. “I’ve been acting for seven years,” said Leon, as she recalled performances as a kid.

“I enjoy impacting people, to perform something that makes people feel whatever that emotion is,” said Dolan. With a comedy like this, she said, that emotion is to make people laugh.

About theater, Leon said she looks at everything and enjoys the vibe and feel. “It’s beautiful. I like it,” she said.

Describing the play as a horror/comedy that is “campy” and “absurd,” Dolan said, “This is actually my favorite musical.”

Leon views the musical as “horrifying in a comedic setting.”

“Little Shop is very, very colorful,” said Amelia Marksteiner, a junior at CHS, referring to organs, intestines, and the brightness of the plants. She said that everyone helps with creating props, adding, “It’s a fun play to make props for.”

After graduating from high school, Dolan plans to attend Eastern New Mexico University, majoring in music education with a minor in theater. As a career, she said she is considering teaching, but she sees herself working in an opera house or a production company, maybe even in films. As a theater and choir kid born and raised in Carlsbad, Dolan said she hopes the people she grew up with will get to see her in something big one day.

Leon plans to study psychology with a minor in theater after graduating from high school. She has an outlook for pursuing a career as a family counselor or therapist. “I just like to help people,” she said.

With a Master’s in Secondary Education, a Bachelor’s in Biochemistry, previous experience teaching with CHS, and currently working on her Master’s in Theater, Danelle Middleton said she is the theater teacher now, a position that she has previously applied for.

Middleton said the theater students have participated in two different competitions this year, along with the dinner and theater performance last October. At the NMAA One-Act state competition, she said, “We got People’s Choice.”

When performing “Tracks,” Middleton said they were disqualified for going 35 seconds over the time limit, but the feedback was great. About winning the award of People’s Choice, she said, “That’s exciting for these kids.”

Stating that musicals are not her strong point, Middleton said, this musical production is about a man-eating plant. “Who doesn’t love that?” she said.