Beetlejuice a Favorite with Drama Club Kids
By Emma Moniz, Class of 2026
Say his name three times and he will be freed. This year the Global Learning Charter Public School Drama Club proudly presents…you guessed it, Beetlejuice! For those of you who have never seen the movies or musical adaptation, Beetlejuice is about a grieving teenager Lydia, who moved into a new house with her father; however, the house they moved into is haunted, haunted by Beetlejuice. In an attempt to join the living, Beetlejuice needs a living person to say his name three times, then he will be free. Prepare to embark on this comedic, yet chaotic journey with the GLCPS Drama Club!
Like always, the Drama Club brings in exceptional students. These students are not only talented, but they are honest and kind. There are many factors that go into making a school production work, but the community built is the foundation that makes the show strong. When speaking to 5th grader Evangeline “Eva” Piadade, and 7th grader Colin DaSilva, they agreed that while neither of them had ever done theater, they both were keen to have the experience. It started off as a fun extracurricular but they quickly realized the community built, and it has influenced them to want to continue with drama club in the future. Eva and Colin eagerly agreed that, “everyone was so welcoming, even though we didn’t know most people, they were so kind and no one ever feels left out.” While the community built is important, there are many rewarding parts for each individual, and also some challenges.
GLCPS junior Abigail Urbina Lopez is playing Lydia in the Beetlejuice production. While she has done theater and similar performances, Beetlejuice is one of her favorite productions to take part in. When asked what was one of the biggest challenges regarding her role she responded, “The most difficult part of Lydia's role was finding an interpretation of her which best fit my liking. There are infinite ways to interpret a role, so being able to find which way I wanted to portray her was very difficult. While she is a child, I didn't want her to sound like an angsty or immature teen, but rather a child trying to cope with grief.” She explained that oftentimes Lydia is portrayed as childish, but she wanted to bring depth to the character and give people a new way to perceive her.
While everyone faces different challenges, Abigail, Colin, and Eva can all agree on one thing. Their favorite part of preparing for the show was getting their costumes for the first time. When Eva was asked about her favorite part of the show she said, “definitely getting to try on my costume, I felt like a princess, twirling around and feeling excited.” Abigail and Colin had similar answers regarding their costumes. The collective excitement to add costumes to the show made everything feel brought to life, and they can’t wait to show everyone.
As the show began Thursday evening, there will be shows today and Saturday as well. It is important that the community that can and will show up for these performers. If you know someone in the show, or if you are a fan of Beetlejuice, or feel like supporting an amazing group of kids during their school production of Beetlejuice, come see the GLCPS Drama Club this weekend! Admission is only $8.00, and GLCPS students and children under 5 years old are free! And, yes, you can pay admission at the door.
Emma Moniz is a senior at GLCPS. As part of her senior internship program, she is writing news articles for and about the GLCPS community.
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