SLV Students Stage ‘Little Shop of Horrors’

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COMMUNITY NEWS

SLV Students Stage ‘Little Shop of Horrors’

San Lorenzo Valley High School Theatre Department presents Little Shop of Horrors, with book & lyrics by Howard Ashman and music by Alan Menken, directed by Daria E. Troxell, with music and vocal direction by Nicki Kerns, at the SLV Performing Arts Center, 7105 Highway 9, Felton, from March 4 through March 13.

Performances are Fridays and Saturdays at 7 p.m., with Sunday matinees at 2 p.m., and a special Community Night performance on Thursday, March 10 at 7 p.m.

Purchasing advance tickets is highly recommended; advanced tickets are available online via the SLV Theatre Boosters webpage: https://hs.slvusd.org/apps/pages/theatreboosters. A limited number of tickets will be available to purchase at the door one hour prior to show-time.

Advisory: Little Shop of Horrors has dark themes and is not recommended for young children or very sensitive viewers.

The story begins when a meek floral assistant, Seymour Krelborn, stumbles upon a new breed of plant, which he names “Audrey II” after his co-worker crush.

This foul-mouthed, R&B-singing carnivore promises unending fame and fortune to the down-and-out Seymour, so long as he continues to feed it blood.

Over time, Seymour discovers Audrey II’s out of this world origins and intent on global domination.

A Broadway and Hollywood sci-fi smash musical, Little Shop Of Horrors has devoured the hearts of theatre-goers for more than 30 years, and is one of the longest-running Off-Broadway shows.

Photo Credit: Tara McMiliin

Seymour Krelborn (Cody Bumbaca-Thomas) has a crush on his flower shop co-worker Audrey (Rachel Young), but he’s shy and she has a boyfriend. His caring for an unusual plant leads to a shocking turn of events.

Howard Ashman and Alan Menken (Disney’s The Little Mermaid, Beauty And The Beast, and Aladdin) are the creative geniuses behind what has become one of the most popular shows in the world. This is the second show Troxell has directed at San Lorenzo Valley High School, the first being Once Upon A Mattress in 2007. Troxell is well-known as a director with Mountain Community Theater, Little People’s Repertory Theatre, Kids on Broadway. As an actor, she has appeared locally in: Miracle on 34th Street: The Play, Harvey, A Streetcar Named Desire, to name a few. She has a master’s in fine arts in acting from California Institute of the Arts. For Kerns, this is her fifth stint as music director for San Lorenzo Valley High School since Grease in 2017. She is the staff accompanist at San Lorenzo Valley High School, music director at Trinity Presbyterian Church in Santa Cruz, and teaches piano virtually from her studio in Boulder Creek. She has a piano performance degree from Dominican College and a master’s in music education from Boston University. n ••• Purchase tickets online at https://search. seatyourself.biz/webstore/accounts/slvhs/ buy-tix General admission is $20, and seniors/ students/SLV Staff, $15. For information, see https://hs.slvusd.org/ apps/pages/theatreboosters.

“COVID Update” from page 5

Local hospitalizations are split between Dignity Health Dominican Hospital in Santa Cruz and Watsonville Community Hospital.

On Feb. 22, Judge Mary Elaine Hammond approved the sale of the Watsonville Community Hospital operation – which has 620 employees -- to the Pajaro Valley Healthcare District Project, a local consortium and sole bidder.

Fundraising has generated $20 million. Leaders such as Mimi Hall, formerly the county’s Health Services director, hops to gain state funding from the $20 billion budget surplus.

To donate, see https://www.pvhdp.org/ CDC Data

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has made public only a fraction of the data it collected about the Covid-19 pandemic, according to a report in The New York Times on Feb. 20.

In January, the CDC posted information on the effectiveness of boosters for those under 65 but did not offer data on those 18-49 years old, the Times reported. As a result, federal health agencies relied on data collected in Israel for booster shot recommendations, according to The Times.

Recently, the CDC created a dashboard showing how much Covid bacteria has been found in wastewater, although state and local agencies had sent the CDC their data since the start of the pandemic, according to The Times.

Jessica Malaty Rivera, an epidemiologist on the team that ran the Covid Tracking Project, told The Times she had been “begging” for that sort of data for two years.

In response, CDC spokeswoman Kristen Nordlund said the agency prioritizes accuracy, noting fears the public might misinterpret some information.

Some information was held back, she told The Times, “because basically, at the end of the day, it’s not yet ready for prime time.”

Vaccine Mandates

The federal vaccine mandate for health care workers was allowed by the U.S. Supreme Court but the court on Jan. 13 blocked the Occupational Safety and Health Administration mandate that employers with 100 or more workers vaccinate or test, saying the agency did not have the right.

California lawmakers have introduced various bills to address Covid-19.

On the table: AB 1993 Assembly Member Buffy Wicks (D-Oakland) to mandate vaccines for all employees and independent contractors — and require employers to verify their workers are immunized. It may be heard in committee March 13. Co-authors include Assembly Member Mark Stone (D-Scotts Valley) and Sen. Richard Pan (D-Sacramento).

Senate Bill 1479, proposed by Pan, to mandate Covid testing plans for school districts. Senate Bill 871, proposed by Pan, to end a personal belief exemption in the student vaccine mandate.

Senate Bill 866, proposed by Sen. Scott Wiener, D-San Francisco, to allow children 12 and older to get Covid vaccines without parental consent.

Track these bills at leginfo.legislature.ca.gov Myocarditis

The Japanese government amended the label for mRNA COVID-19 vaccines developed by Pfizer and Moderna to add myocarditis to their list of significant “adverse drug reactions” after case reports of myocarditis following COVID-19 vaccination increased.

Myocarditis is inflammation of the heart, which can lead to clots, a stroke or heart attack.

Parents anxious to have shots for their younger children (six months to 4 years) must wait for Pfizer and BioNTech to gather more data on whether a third dose produces the desired result. That may be in early April.

Mary Holland, president and general counsel of Children’s Health Defense, contends there is no Covid emergency for children under 5 years old as children have a 99.995% recovery rate, and medical literature indicates “almost zero” healthy children under 5 have died from Covid.

Vaccination

Public health officials consider vaccinations to be the number one tool to prevent hospitalizations and deaths from COVID-19.

According to County Public Health, and the two most recent three deaths were men, one in his 70s and one in his 80s. One was unvaccinated; the other was vaccinated but not boosted. Both had underlying health conditions.

The county website lists vaccination status as “yes” or “no.”

In February, 10 deaths in February were added to the dashboard, which now shows fatalities week by week.

The most Covid fatalities in the county occurred in January 2021, Vaccines were not available and in one week, 22 people died.

California reports 83.1% of residents age 5 and up have had at least one shot.

The CDC Covid tracke reports Santa Cruz County has 92.8% of residents age 12 and up with at least one shot and 84.7% fully vaccinated.

Fully vaccinated means having two shots (Pfizer or Moderna) or one Johnson & Johnson shot. All were developed for the initial Covid-19 coronavirus.

For Omicron, a booster shot is needed. Booster shots are 90 percent effective against preventing Omicron hospitalizations, according to the CDC.

Public health officials say the scientific consensus is that Covid vaccines are safe, but others question relying on science from drug-makers, which saw profits rise in 2021. They point to the U.S. government database, https://vaers.hhs.gov/, where health care providers are to report adverse events after a vaccine.

The reporting site was created after Congress passed a law in 1986 protecting vaccine manufacturers from civil personal injury lawsuits and wrongful death lawsuits resulting from vaccine injuries.

Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar invoked a 2005 law that allows the HHS secretary to provide legal protection to companies making or distributing critical medical supplies such as vaccines unless there’s “willful misconduct” by the company. This protection lasts until 2024.

Dr. Pamela Popper of Ohio has sued HHS, FDA and CDC concerning vaccines for kids under 16, and offers a support group. See https://makeamericansfreeagain.com/

The U.S. Department of Defense has filed a motion to dismiss a lawsuit filed by 18 service members challenging the vaccine mandate. Federal Judge Allen Winsor in Florida is hearing that case.

Omicron

The state estimated Omicron comprises 91% of cases statewide but did not have a breakdown of Omicron hospitalizations or deaths. Not all Covid-19 cases requiring hospitalization are sequenced, and the proportion of cases due to the Omicron variant that die is still being determined.

People fear Omicron, though this variant is less deadly than Delta, which raged in 2021.

They may have a pre-existing condition (diabetes, obesity, asthma, high blood pressure).

Half of Americans do, so they are at higher risk for severe Covid illness.

So are people 85 and older.

Scotts Valley Schools

Scotts Valley schools, with 2,183 students, report 20 active student cases and 2 staff cases in March.

Brook Knoll Elementary has 6 student cases and 2 staff cases.

Scotts Valley High has 6 student cases, Scotts Valley Middle School 5 and Vine Hill Elementary. All have zero staff cases.

Santa Cruz County Office of Education, with Inspire Diagnostic, has provided 335,400 tests.

Student and staff cases peaked at 4,407 on Jan. 27, dropping to 434 on March 1, according to the County Office of Education. The 14-day positivity rate, 12.25% in January, is now 3.13%.

The County Office of Education offers drivethough testing for students, staff and families at:

Cabrillo College, Aptos, Parking Lot K, Monday to Friday 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Saturday 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.

Santa Cruz County Fairgrounds, 2601 E. Lake Ave., Watsonville, Monday to Friday 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., and Saturday 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.

Santa Cruz County Office of Education, 399 Encinal St., Santa Cruz, Monday to Friday, 2 to 5 p.m.

For test options see: https://tinyurl.com/ get-tested-santa-cruz.

The state shortened the isolation time for those testing positive from 10 days to five days, based on federal recommendations.

For booster shot appointments go to https:// myturn.ca.gov/ or ask your local doctor and pharmacies. For local vaccine providers, visit www. santacruzhealth.org/coronavirusvaccine.

For help scheduling an appointment, call Community Bridges Helpline, 831-219-8607 or 831440-3556 (English, Spanish, Mixteco and Triqui).

For local information on COVID-19, go to www. santacruzhealth.org/coronavirus or call (831) 4544242 between 8 a.m. and 5 p.m. Monday through Friday. n

••• Active COVID cases: 1,869

••• COVID Deaths: 254 As of Feb. 28 Age 85 and older: 109 • 75-84: 59 • 65-74: 44 • 60-64: 15 55-59: 4 • 45-54: 10 • 35-44: 8 • 25-34: 5 Underlying Conditions Yes: 205 • No: 49 Race White 145 • Latinx 88 • Asian 16 • Black 2 Amer Indian 1 • Hawaiian 1 • Another 1 Gender Men: 130 • Women: 124 Location At facility for aged: 114 • Not at a facility: 140