‘Another shot’: Turlock High students prep for showings of once-canceled musical
Turlock High students are preparing to step into the spotlight once again for a new run of performances of the spring musical that was shut down three weeks ago right after opening.
Turlock Unified School District announced the new showings Wednesday on its Facebook page. The new showtimes for “Be More Chill” will be 7 p.m. May 13-15, just over a month after the original run was canceled following its April 7 opening night. A family-only performance went on two days later, but many students and families still missed out because of the unexpected cancellation.
“It’s another shot to do what we couldn’t do,” said junior J.T. McElroy, who has a main role in the show.
The school canceled “Be More Chill,” a sci-fi musical about a teen student who hopes the help of a supercomputer will make him popular, after receiving “multiple concerns” about content from parents and community members, district spokeswoman Marie Russell said. Officials also believed the director and site administration did not communicate about approving the spring musical.
Many people expressed outrage about the cancellation, from Turlock High parents up to the show’s writer and actors who tweeted their support.
Though the show contains references to mature themes, cast members interviewed by The Modesto Bee at the time pointed out there was a content warning on the show posters. They also said the show carries important messages that resonate with struggling high-schoolers.
McElroy said the cast was called in to hear the news Wednesday during a lunch meeting with the director. After seeing the initial support, McElroy had joked maybe “Be More Chill” would have a second run, but he never thought it would actually be an option.
“That was just the most outlandish, impossible thought at that time,” he said.
Not all kids leapt at chance
Some of the seniors felt like they’d already had their ending and were reluctant to do the show again, McElroy said. There was already a final performance, senior speeches and a cast party. But he and some of the younger students didn’t have the sense of closure the seniors did.
McElroy stood up at the meeting and said the cast should view this as a chance to deliver a message lost in the chaos of the cancellation. He feels this is more of a new opportunity than a do-over.
As an actor, McElroy said he’s taking this as a chance to keep improving on his performance.
“These last shows we’re getting are the encore, not the conclusion,” he said.
Amanda Howry, the mother of the show’s leading actor, said in a text that she hopes the community will come support the students and their show with a huge audience turnout. She previously told the Bee the musical was a good entryway for her to talk about mature topics with her son.
“I’m just beyond thrilled that this musical gets another chance at the message being received, and that these kids deserve nothing less than (an) amazing run,” Howry said.
Show’s ‘engraved’ in actors’ minds
Zefyra Mazuelos, a sophomore in the ensemble, said she thinks the cast will still have everything performance-ready even without many new rehearsals scheduled.
“When you’re in a show, it’s just engraved in your brain,” Mazuelos said. “I think all of us are pretty much like, it’s still in there.”
Mazuelos’ mom, Kristi, said she’s glad many friends and family members who didn’t make it to opening night will now have a chance to see the show. She spoke out in support of the show when it was first canceled and believes everyone should come listen to the show’s message.
“It was something that the kids felt really strongly about, and now they get a chance to do the rest of their shows,” Kristi Mazuelos said.
Her daughter hopes the attention given to “Be More Chill” this month will encourage people to come see what all the controversy was about in the first place.
“I think it’d be really good to support a theater that is getting a second chance at showing a message that we all feel is really important,” she said. “And that’s one of the reasons we were so devastated is because we wanted (the story) to be heard.”
This story was originally published April 29, 2022 at 12:00 AM.
