Episode 9: “Isaac’s Top Ten”
Dante gets to meet Isaac, who is 16 and involved in his High School theater program. They talk about what it’s like to do theater in high school, how to get involved, college, and end with listing their top 10 favorite musicals!
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[MUSIC]
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[INTRO]
DANTE
Dante’s Acting Adventures!
[THEME MUSIC]
Hello everybody and welcome to my podcast! I can’t believe we’ve made it through nine whole episodes together. I’m excited to introduce my final guest. Joining me today is, Isaac. Isaac is 16 years old and goes to Pleasant Grove High School here in Utah and is pretty involved in all things theater. Isaac’s favorite show that he has been in is-
ISAAC
Frog and Toad.
DANTE
And when Isaac isn’t doing theater, he likes too-
ISAAC
It’s a rare occasion when I’m not doing something related to theater, but if that is the case, you can find me hanging out with friends, sitting in my room relaxing, cooking, baking, who knows.
[GUITAR MUSIC]
[MUSIC FADES]
DANTE
Let’s get into it. Hello Isaac and welcome to my podcast today! How are you doing?
ISAAC
I’m doing great Dante, how are you doing today?
DANTE
I’m doing great too. I’m excited that you’re here to talk about theater with me. Alright. Let’s get started. My first question for you is kind of a big one. I’m wondering, what is it like doing High School theater?
[SOUND EFFECT]
ISAAC
It’s really fun. It’s definitely a big step from Jr. High. My teacher is super involved in all aspects of the theater, so we have really good quality shows. I feel like she puts a lot of time into our set. She puts a lot of time into our costumes. And it’s just a nice break after Jr. High, which is typically a little more simple and a little more laid back. It’s a nice break to get out there and start doing some more things with it.
DANTE
Wow, that’s really cool. Hey, in High School theater do you just perform or do you get to do backstage stuff too, what’s it like?
ISAAC
So, it really is up to the person but something fun is that I do all of it. I do the stage-crew part of it, I do the acting part of it. I audition for the shows, I help put it together, go to set-build days, paint the set, and then I’m up on the stage singing and dancing. I do all of it.
DANTE
Wow, you’re really cool doing all of it. That sounds exactly like what I want to do. I’ve been learning on this podcast that I want to do more than just perform, so that’s really exciting to know that I could do backstage stuff too! Hey also, I’ve heard a lot that there are different conferences and competitions in high school. What’s that like?
ISAAC
The main ones we have right now, so it’s kind of a big award that we have, it’s called the Jimmy Awards. It’s kind of like the Tony Awards for High Schools in Utah. Basically they’ll have judges come to each of your shows and they’ll choose a best actor/actress, best supporting actor/actress, best musical, and then you’ll compete and then we also have another competition that’s just our drama festival competition, where you compete with monologues and scenes and musical numbers and all sorts of things.
DANTE
What do you get if you win the competitions?
ISAAC
In the Jimmy Awards, if you win a competition, you get a big scholarship or a big ticket into college. It really helps you get into a big college, and it just puts it on your record, which is a really good thing to have on your record. And then in the festivals you win 1st, 2nd, and 3rd place medals and you win certificates. You get recognition. That’s also something that’s really good to put on a college resume or just helps give you an edge on your experience.
DANTE
Wow, that sounds really exciting. I didn’t know you could win a medal for doing theater. I know that in high school, they have a student council and I was wondering if they had anything like that for drama?
ISAAC
So, at my school we do have a drama council. They have that at most schools around us I think. I actually got the opportunity to be on it this year, as a Sophomore, which is a really big deal.
DANTE
Woah.
ISAAC
Since I’m kind of young for high school. I’m the Historian on our council. So basically I help document the year. I take pictures, I create a record for our current year. It’s really fun. I get to help them decide what we’re going to do with our drama club activities and I help recruit new students all over the place. Help meet students and bring them into theater.
[APPLAUSE]
DANTE
Wow, that sounds really fun. I think that I want to try for the drama council when I get to high school. How do you get on the drama council?
ISAAC
So my teacher just kind of put me on this year, I’m not quite sure how I got on. But I know usually they will have at the end of the year, elections where you’ll run for whatever thing and then it’s really the teachers choice if they want more people on it and who.
DANTE
So, I think my chances of getting on a drama council could be pretty good.
ISAAC
Yeah.
DANTE
Wow, that’s exciting! Let’s keep going. Alright, well my next question for you is kind of a big one. How does high school theater help you prepare for college theater?
[SOUND EFFECT]
ISAAC
I would say it’s mainly the participation you put into doing your high school theater. I would say it’s kind of a level thing, where in Jr. High it’s more simple and then you get into high school, where it’s a little bit more, but still on the easier side, and then you get into college, which is more advanced. So, I think putting in that preparation really is helping you enough as it is because you’re getting more experience as you go on. You’re finding new things to do and you’re increasing your talent and you’re finding more out about what you can do.
DANTE
Wow, that sounds really exciting. It sounds like high school kind of gives you some time to figure out what your skill sets are and even kind of what you like as far as acting or doing backstage stuff goes, so that you know what you want to do in college. Are there other ways to do theater after high school besides just going to college for theater?
ISAAC
There are so many ways to do it after high school, and even before high school. I am just starting high school and I’ve already been in 13 shows. And mainly that’s from going to UVU’s summer camps, I’ve auditioned for Hale Center shows, I’ve done Sundance shows, you can just kind of look around for different community theaters and stay involved that way. I’ve seen shows at community theaters that have been really good.
DANTE
That’s really cool. What shows did you do at the UVU summer camps?
ISAAC
My first show I did at the UVU summer camps was Suessical Jr. and I played the role of JoJo.
DANTE
Woah.
ISAAC
And then I did Charlie and the Chocolate Factory and I was Charlie.
DANTE
Wow!
ISAAC
And then the next summer I did The Lion King and I was in the ensemble as a monkey.
DANTE
[Monkey sounds]
ISAAC
And then I did Into the Woods Jr. and I played the role of Jack.
DANTE
Woah, I think I saw you in one of those shows. Hey, you were really great!
ISAAC
Hey, thanks!
DANTE
Yeah, of course. Well, it’s good to hear that there are lots of ways to do theater, especially here in Utah, without just having to go to college. Alright. I have another question for you. I hear that you made it into an Open Jar program in New York. Tell me about that.
[SOUND EFFECT]
ISAAC
So it all started- our school does an annual trip to Texas. A Texas thespians convention and you go and you work in a lot of different workshops with a lot of different people who have been on Broadway, and I went to a class with Jack Sippel teaching it. Jack Sippel has been in Newsies, he choreographed The Prom, the movie, and I was learning a dance with him and he’s part of this Open Jar program that you can audition for. So, I decided to audition for it with my friends. So we just sang one sentence of a song, it was really short, I was really surprised.
DANTE
That’s really short.
ISAAC
Yeah. And then we did a little dance audition and then a few weeks later, I got an email saying that I was accepted and so during the summer, I could go to New York and go to all these different singing, dancing, and acting classes with all these different Broadway professionals and it sounded really cool.
DANTE
Woah, congratulations! That’s really awesome. Was it scary to audition and do the singing and dancing for everybody?
ISAAC
It was more of an individual thing afterwards, so it wasn’t super scary. I think the scariest part was not doing hardly anything, and was just singing one line.
DANTE
Wow, it sounds like they really saw something in you. That’s really cool. Exciting to know that there’s all these cool opportunities out there. Alright, well let’s keep on going. Here’s my next question for you. What is your favorite part of doing theater in high school?
[SOUND EFFECT]
ISAAC
I think the main thing is that you just meet so many awesome people and it’s really just an area where you can just be accepted and be who you are and you can do really, whatever you want. Because you know, theater people tend to be really social and outgoing, but tech people are more shy sometimes and not as social, so it’s just a really nice blend of people coming together, and you can always find a place in there for something to do.
DANTE
I really like that. I hope my high school program has cool people like you, that’s for sure. Alright. I wanted to wrap up this episode by doing something really fun. I wanted us to list our top 10 favorite musicals. Does that sound like fun to you?
ISAAC
Sounds like tons of fun. Let’s do it.
DANTE
Alright, you go first. What are your top 10 favorite musicals?
ISAAC
Okay so I’m going to start at 10 and go up. So my 10th favorite musical would probably be Hamilton. It’s a really fun musical. Then The Hunchback of Notre Dame.
DANTE
Oh, I haven’t listened to that one.
ISAAC
And then Frog and Toad.
DANTE
Hey! I’ve heard of Frog and Toad. Me and my friend Jordan talked about it in the very first episode of this podcast.
ISAAC
Oh, how fun. Then probably She Loves Me.
DANTE
Good one.
ISAAC
Then Come From Away.
DANTE
Nice
ISAAC
And then Little Women, which we did at my school this year.
DANTE
Woah, cool.
ISAAC
And then Sweeney Todd, which is dark.
DANTE
That sounds scary.
ISAAC
And then Chess,
DANTE
Alright.
ISAAC
And then The Phantom of the Opera.
DANTE
Ooo. That’s a good one. I like that one too.
ISAAC
And then my favorite one is probably Hadestown, which is a newer musical.
DANTE
Hadestown. I’ve listened to some of the music, but I should probably listen to all of it if it’s your favorite musical of all time. Why is Hadestown your favorite musical?
ISAAC
I just think it has a nice variety of different types of songs. It has jazzy songs, it has more serious songs. I like the characterization in it and the very unique voices of each of the actors.
DANTE
Wow, those are some good reasons. That sounds really awesome. Alright, are you ready for my top 10 favorite musicals?
ISAAC
Let’s hear it.
DANTE
Alright. Coming in number 10 is In the Heights, the movie. I recently just watched it, and really liked it. Number 9 is Shrek the Musical. Number 8 is the Adams Family.
ISAAC
Oh, fun! I’m doing that one right now in my high school.
DANTE
Really? Are you performing in it?
ISAAC
I am. I’m performing as an ancestor.
DANTE
No way! That’s really cool. Hey, I’ll have to come check that out. When is it performing?
ISAAC
It opens on February 3rd next month.
DANTE
Aright. I’ll be there. Okay. Number 7 is Matilda. Number 6 is the Lion King musical. Number 5 is one that Abigail told me in her episode. How the Grinch Stole Christmas, the musical.
ISAAC
How fun.
DANTE
Very exciting. Number…hey what number was I on?
ISAAC
I believe you were on number 4.
DANTE
Number 4, that’s right, thank you. Number 4 is Hello Dolly. Sarah told me about that one in Episode 8, where we talked about singing and voice lessons. Anyways, number 3 is Seussical the musical. Number 2 is Into the Woods, where I saw you perform as Jack!
ISAAC
That’s a fun one.
DANTE
I like that one too. And number 1 is Frog and Toad.
ISAAC
I love Frog and Toad.
DANTE
Me too! I think those were some pretty good musicals, how about you?
ISAAC
I agree with you. Why is Frog and Toad your favorite?
DANTE
You know, I think I just like Frog and Toad because it’s all about friendship and being there for your friends and also the music is really fun to listen to. Well, thanks so much for coming onto my podcast today Isaac, and talking to me all about theater and musicals. It was really nice to have you.
ISAAC
Of course. Thank you so much for letting me on it.
DANTE
You bet! Hey before we leave today, would you mind helping me with our last fun-fact on today’s episode and for my podcast?
ISAAC
Let’s do it!
DANTE
Alright, let’s do it!
[FUN-FACT MUSIC]
DANTE
Alright Isaac, take it away!
ISAAC
Okay, so today’s fun-fact is kind of a trivia fun-fact. Do you know what the longest running musical on Broadway is?
DANTE
The longest running musical on Broadway? No, what is it?
ISAAC
Since Les Miserable closed, it is now The Phantom of the Opera.
DANTE
The Phantom of the Opera. How long has it been running on Broadway for?
ISAAC
It’s been on Broadway for 39 years now.
[GASPS]
DANTE
Wow. That is a long time. Well, thanks again for coming onto my podcast and I’m excited to come see you in The Addams Family in February.
ISAAC
I look forward to seeing you in the audience.
DANTE
Sweet! See you later Isaac!
ISAAC
See you!
[THEME MUSIC]