Grease: Musical Theater at its Best, By Mindy Pedlar

COMMUNITY NEWS

Grease: Musical Theater at its Best

By Mindy Pedlar

Skip Epperson’s simple, classic set design takes us back to 1959, transporting us to Rydell High School’s reunion in Cabrillo Stage’s production of Grease now playing at the Crocker Theater.

Jon Nordgren leads a group of fine musicians that recreate the style and feel of 50s rock & roll.

Caleb Wildman’s creative lighting design aids in setting the mood.

Bethany Deal‘s costumes are spot on and well suited to the fresh yet 50’s choreography of Director Cassie Nordgren. Why is it so much fun to see full skirts swirl in the big dance numbers? It just is.

And then there’s the cast. Tall, blonde and handsome, Jack Bloome commands the stage as Danny Zuko, leader of the Burger Palace Boys--the cool kids of Rydell High.

His love interest, the new girl in town Sandy Dumbrowsk, is convincingly played by Haley Clarke. Though petite, Haley matches Bloome’s vocal strength, and you can’t help but root for this couple.

Scott Boynton as Kenickie has the perfect look and Elvis-like moves as he sings Greased Lightning, while the whole gang has a blast singing and dancing around the 1959 Nash Metropolitan that Epperson and Technical Director Marcel Tjioe have overhauled for its moment in the spotlight. The entire cast gives their all.

There are magical moments: Jennifer Taylor Daniels’ rendition of Beauty School Dropout is a must-see, and local favorite David Jackson adds harmony and heart to Raining on Prom Night.

In short, the youthful enthusiasm of this talented cast uplifts the spirit. This show is simply a joy to watch. Only two weeks left, don’t miss it. Now playing ThursdaySunday until July 10.

••• Next Up: Candide

Candide, with its magnificent score by Leonard Bernstein, is Cabrillo Stage’s next offering directed and choreographed by Gary John La Rosa of New York.

Mounting this show, originally scheduled for 2020 but cancelled due to Covid-19, is a tremendous undertaking.

Fortunately, Candide is on the bucket list of most musicians — including Artistic Director Jon Nordgren, who decided to produce it again in 2022, Cabrillo Stage’s 41st season.

Musical Director Cheryl Anderson and Director Gary John La Rosa have assembled a cast of exceptional singers to present this beautiful show, complete with a 14-piece live orchestra conducted by Ms. Anderson.

Michael Stahl as Candide and Lori Schulman as Cunegonde, who both starred in last season’s production of Pirates of Penzance, head the large cast of 27.

The story, based on French Philosopher Voltaire’s 1759 satirical novella, takes our hero, Candide, and his true love, Cunegonde, on separate journeys around the world, where they meet misfortune at every turn.

Reunited in the end, the disillusioned couple focuses with humility and appreciation on the simple, beautiful things in life — family, friends, home and, of course, a garden.

Thus, the stage is set for Bernstein’s vocal masterpiece, Make Our Garden Grow.

Candide runs Thursday-Sunday, July 21 through Aug. 14. Both shows play at the Cabrillo Crocker Theater on the Cabrillo College campus, 6500 Soquel Avenue, Aptos. Tickets can be purchased individually or at a discounted rate for the season. Tickets available online at cabrillostage.com. Box office is open for phone and walk-in sales Thursday-Saturday noon to 6 p.m. n

“Missing Workers” from page 5

Strategies that expand access to childcare, improve digital literacy, and increase educational attainment and awareness of relevant career pathways--especially when they are targeted and refined to support specific populations--can increase labor force participation and improve economic mobility.

2) Workforce attraction and retention for healthcare and hospitality industries.

Both have seen considerable churn and challenges over the last two+ years of the pandemic, and attracting new workers is necessary to fully meet their workforce demands.

The Santa Cruz County Workforce Development Board may be able to help with attraction and retention efforts by working with regional employers to develop career profiles and pathways that illuminate the purpose, earnings potential, and upward trajectory of these jobs.

Developing strategies to educate students and jobseekers on these potential employment opportunities could also be valuable in the larger effort to bring more workers into the industries. Surveys have shown that factors like pay, purpose, and flexibility are particularly important and salient for those looking for new job opportunities in the post-pandemic world, and employers would benefit from readily advertising these aspects of their jobs.

3) Assess and compile the emerging employment skills and pathways in agriculture.

The slow march of automation in agriculture was briefly accelerated by the pandemic, though shortages of human workers highlighted the role that humans will continue to play in agriculture. Many agriculture roles will increasingly rely on some knowledge of web technologies and the Internet of Things and some may even require working alongside robots to maintain them and serve as quality control.

Working with farmers to develop programs that incentivize and upskill current workers may have some success in attracting new entrants and retaining talent. In some cases, these techn skills may be paired with basic education, ESL, computer literacy, or intermediate math or sciences courses to ensure workers have the sufficient background knowledge necessary to operate the technical equipment. This opportunity for workers to advance their knowledge and abilities may help adopters of these programs differentiate themselves from other farms and allow ag workers to increase their education while working.

4) Emphasize education and workforce development among younger adult residents in South Santa Cruz County.

Residents in the Southern sub-region of the county are, on average, younger, less educated, more likely to be in lower-paying employment, and more racially and ethnically diverse than residents in North County.

Workforce development programs in South Santa Cruz County should include these priorities: Increase educational attainment for those that have a high school diploma or less as their highest level of education. Labor force participation, overall earnings, and economic mobility are all improved with higher educational attainment, particularly if those individuals have less than a high school diploma.

Emphasize career education and career pathways that are available in the county and provide an onramp to a sustainable career. Increase communication and engagement between employers and young people. Field trips, site visits, and career days can help middle and high school students better understand the full range of career opportunities and how to best work toward them.

Rather than having all students attend a four-year university to figure out what their interests are, some students may be more interested to learn about healthcare careers that start with a certificate or associate’s degree but allow for growth and strong earning potential down the road.

Identify employment opportunities that allow for additional training and education for current workers. Employment opportunities that serve the joint purpose of inspiring and offering young workers more opportunities for training and education, while also providing some income and work experience, would be quite valuable. This could include pre-apprenticeships and apprenticeship programs,as well as paid internships and more traditional full-time employment paired with training and/or educational programs.

5) Promote efforts that will expand affordable housing options around

Santa Cruz County’s work and transit hubs.

Between July 2019 and July 2021, the California Department of Finance estimates that Santa Cruz County’s population declined by a net 4,600 residents. This was driven by nearly 5,000 residents leaving the county.

While this data does not provide countylevel detail on the demographics of these workers, we know that low-and middleincome workers make up the greatest share of residents who are leaving statewide.

High costs of living are likely a significant driving force for this migration. Promoting additional housing — including the initiatives that are already underway — is one way to increase affordability. Improving traffic and commute times is another area of opportunity to increase the livability of the county for a broad range of workers. n •••

Read the full report at: https://workforcescc.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/05/ Santa-Cruz-County-SoW-Final-2022.pdf

Cover Photo: KFC in Capitola is hiring, and pay depends on experience.