Noemi Meza
From Thursday, April 10th to Saturday, April 12th, Dinuba High School’s Drama 2 class performed their reenactment of Sister Act, written by Joseph Howard.
The lead actresses were Sarah J. Vega as Deloris Van Cartier (Sister Mary Clarence), Bee Martinez as Sister Mary Robert, and Savannah Peters as Mother Superior. Following them as the supporting leads, Johnathan Domingcil played Curtis, Abraham Martinez played Eddie (Sweaty Eddie), Jeremiah Domingcil played Joey, Dakotah Rios was TJ, Argelio Lopez was cast as Pablo, Deana Cabrera as Sister Mary Lazarus, Sadie Gonzales as Sister Mary Patrick, and Michael Rivas as Monsignor O’Hara.
Drama director Pablo Villagrana, Choreography director Amanda Martinez, and Assistant Director Carlos Andrew Barajas put a lot of effort and dedication into making sure the students casted for the musical understood what they were doing, getting the choreography down to perfection, and that those in audience for either of the four showings were enjoying with laughter abrupting all around and appreciation for the cast.
What is Sister Act?
Sister Act revolves around Deloris Van Cartier: an aspiring singer who, unfortunately, has to go into hiding when she witnesses her boyfriend, Curtis, commit a murder. During the opening scene, the audience sees Deloris and two backup dancers singing in one of the bars, accompanied by the opening song, “Take Me to Heaven” by Alan Menken.
Curtis gives Deloris a navy blue fur coat for her to wear. After Deloris witnesses Curtis’ crime, that coat is what leads Curtis to the realization that Deloris had gone to the police.
In Act 1, now knowing that Curtis, TJ, Pablo, and Joey would be on the hunt for Deloris, Eddie arranges for Deloris to go into hiding at Saint Katherine’s Convent, assuming the identity of Sister Mary Clarence. Mother Superior has an issue with Deloris hiding out within the Convent. But, eventually, she comes around to it. Mother Superior, knowing of Deloris’ talent for singing, lets her help out the Choir, claiming that she had “no words” for how they performed. What follows is comedy, music and dancing.
At the end of the musical, Deloris and the nuns within Saint Katherine find themselves running and defending themselves from TJ, Pablo, and Joey. With the Sisters armed with wooden bat-like weapons, Dakotah’s character TJ finds himself surrounded and in the middle as they attack him. As the Musical comes to an end, everyone comes together on the stage as they dance/sing for the Pope, who can be seen walking along the top of the setup that was on stage.
A FINAL REVIEW
Overall, the music, the acting, the hard work, and the clear dedication that the students and the directors brought to the musical to life. Everyone who participated was amazing; they brought life to their roles beyond the given scripts.