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Berra Rewards Her “Kids” With Freedom To Perform

leslieberragosOn September 28, for one night only, a powerful sound will rise up from the brick theater on Main Street in Old Town Newhall.

It’s like a sighting of a rare bird or phase of the moon – it’s not a regularly scheduled event, but when it happens, you don’t want to miss it.

On that night, Leslie Berra will present the seventh “Gift of Song” showcase for young talent who have “paid their dues” by volunteering behind the scenes of the community and regional theaters. This is their night to shine and Berra can’t think of a better way to thank them.

“I have been really privileged for years to work with young people who totally volunteer their time and give their time and talent to raise money for other people and places, primarily here at the Canyon Theatre Guild. I wanted to give them a gift, I wanted to give them the freedom to sing and perform whatever they wanted to do, whether or not it was appropriate, whether or not their skill set was there or not, I didn’t care. It was an expression, a thank you. All the costs would be covered by our family so it would be no burden on them.


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Berra and her husband, Bob, have underwritten the cost of each Gift of Song, but the payback has been priceless.

“They (the young performers) would be in these fundraisers and their friends couldn’t come see them, because they couldn’t afford the tickets. I wanted to give them a night with everything leading up to it so they could have that feeling. After we did it once, we asked ourselves, why do we only have to do it once?

“When I first started, I had to hold their hands, helping them find songs, but they do that now” Berra said. “Besides the performing, it’s letting them start from scratch; choreograph, costume, stage, all that kind of stuff.”

This Gift of Song is called “Time to Change,” a theme/name that Berra gave them to note the revolving door of talent.

“We’re evolving, we’ve added some different older kids who weren’t able to participate before and we’ve lost some kids because they’ve moved on, as they should. And we brought in some of the next generation who are still doing good things for the Guild, but they’re getting a little older – they’ve earned their thank yous. It’s not just the fundraisers that they’ve performed in; it’s running lights, and pulling drops and handling props, ushering when they don’t get parts in shows.”

The first Gift of Song stands out in Berra’s memory because it was such a unique event, a thrill she didn’t want to end.

“It was unheard of. We had all these kids at the house, and it was way too long, with 40 songs, because we thought we were only going to do it once.”

The event is free to the community and, while previous performances were held at the 81-seat Repertory East Playhouse, invites a larger audience to the 280-seat Canyon Theatre Guild.

“It’s not a fundraiser at all, it’s a gift to the kids and a gift to their friends and family and a gift to the community,” Berra explained. “The venues that we use are allowed to run a bar. If people are so inclined to make a donation to the venue, they are encouraged to do that. We’ve done it at the REP we’re going to try it this year at the CTG to see what we can do in one night with 280 seats. Both of them are all about the arts and can use the donations.”

She’s proud that donations from Gift of Song were able to provide two TV monitors for the lobby of the REP.

The show will feature performers between the ages of 15 and 26 doing a variety of songs, some of them involving puppets, some including dance. Musical numbers include songs from current Broadway shows “The Addams Family,” “Spring Awakening,” “Edges” and “The Unauthorized Biography of Samantha Brown.”

“I love that the kids find these Off-Broadway shows that have wonderful music,” Berra said. “They’re nice little gems that I wouldn’t have known about.”

Sept. 28 Tuesday, doors open 6, light dinner, desserts, 6:30 Nathaniel Dobies playing original stuff for preshow. Bar’s open all night. Show starts at 7.

Berra agrees that putting on a show like Gift of Song is a lot of work, but she wouldn’t give it up for anything.

”It’s just such a feeling of, I don’t know, it just feels good,” she said. “They keep me young because I get them in my house working on stuff, they keep me aware, they keep me from saying ‘the only songs I know are from “Funny Girl” and “Oklahoma!”’ because they bring all this other stuff in .They keep me educated and informed, they keep me spirited and lively to where I don’t think I’m my age, I think I’m their age, which is really good. I get the satisfaction of watching them and how they feel, like a proud parent, whether it’s my own child or 20 children up there, you’ve got to say ‘look at that!’

“It keeps my house busy, keeps my house spirited. A quiet house isn’t for me.”

She refers to some of her long-time performers as “old faithfuls” and the old faithfuls were eager to heap praise on Berra and her efforts.

“The gift of song has been a fantastic experience,” said Kamber Moen, a singer and dancer who is one of the original Gift of Song performers and is now directing her first show at the Canyon Theatre Guild. “We all are given the opportunity to shine in our way by getting to choose the material we want to do, how we want to present it, and who we want to work with within the group. It has been a great way to work with people I have grown up with, get to support each other, and to see how everyone has pushed themselves to get better each and every performance.”

The event is also an opportunity to develop some skills that may not get a chance in other shows.

“It has given me the confidence to be comfortable singing in front of a crowd,” Moen added. “As well as a chance to do some really funny and sometimes dramatic, heartfelt material. I have been so blessed to have been involved since day one and it’s all due to the fabulous Leslie. She believes in every single one of us and makes us a better performer with every show.”

“Since I’ve been working towards my Bachelor’s degree at CSUN for the past two years, I haven’t had any time to be in (regular) shows,” said Leah DiPaola, who started out on the CTG stage and now teaches dance at College of the Canyons. “Gift of Song provided the perfect opportunity to be involved in something that would be an outlet for my theatrical angst. I have been involved in many Jr. Cabarets, adult cabarets, and variety shows here and there, but never once was I offered the chance to pick out a song–ANY song that I wanted–and perform it in front of a live audience until Leslie came along with this novel idea.”

DiPaola described the first Gift of Song as a relaxed, “black box” performance, adding that the event was so successful, it grew into a full-fledged costumed, choreographed production within three years.

“Suddenly we were wearing costumes, making props, staging scenes, and getting naked.”

A bit of explanation: In last year’s Gift of Song, DiPaola’s brother, Joshua, wore a body stocking to perform a number from “Equus” in homage to “Harry Potter” star Daniel Radcliffe’s buff performance on Broadway.

”Basically, we get to perform the best in the musical theatre world. In one show I was a bird (“Seussical”), a child from the 60’s (“Hairspray”), and Charlie Manson’s stalker/ lover Squeaky Fromme (“Assassins”), all in one night. I’ve performed sexy dances, awkward flower child dances, and get yo’ groove on with the audience dances. Every one has been a unique chance to sing songs I never thought I’d want to sing in public.”

“The dedication, patience and organization that makes up that goddess of a woman we call Leslie Berra makes each show special in its own way,” she added. “The cast has changed, the song list has changed, and now the venue has changed, but as long as we have Leslie, the heart of Gift of Song can never change.”

Tom Lund, who has been performing in Gift of Song shows since December 2007, and shared  vocal director honors with Berra on the award-winning performance of “Rent” by the Santa Clarita Regional Theatre, said that it’s been one of his greatest performing experiences.

“A lot of us are in a bit of an awkward phase because there aren’t always a lot of shows that showcase the talent of the young adult generation,” he said. “We have the opportunity to not only showcase what we can do as performers but also the work of young, new writers. When I choose pieces to perform, I tend to select songs that the general audiences have not heard, it gives me the opportunity to show them who I am as a performer. I personally feel that the musicals from Off-Broadway are better written, they hold up even out of context of the show, and a lot of times have characters and issues/topics that I can relate to.”

“I am also extremely grateful to Leslie for giving us this opportunity,” Lund continued. “The showcase started as her thank you to her ‘kids’ for performing at the various fundraisers she chaired at the CTG where we were never really performing the stuff we’d want to perform. She never tells us that we can’t do a number, she’s always encouraging us to go out there and do our best. She’s an extremely positive director, yet can still give us constructive criticism. ‘Time for Change’ features some of the new talent in the next generation. Leslie is having some of the more experienced performers “adopt” some of the younger performers and help them out. I think that is just an amazing thing for all of us involved.”

Admission to Gift of Song is free, doors open at 6 p.m. for light refreshments, pre-show original music by Nathaniel Dobies begins at 6:30 p.m. and the show starts at 7 p.m. The Canyon Theatre Guild is located at 24242 Main Street, Old Town Newhall. For more information, call 661-799-2702.

 

 

 

Berra Rewards Her “Kids” With Freedom To Perform

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