PUC on Broadway was showcased at St. Helena High School Performing Arts Center from February 3-4. People braved the winter weather to watch, but the cast believed it was well worth it. 

Leila Beltran, a sophomore liberal studies major, was the co-director for PUC on Broadway with Student Association President Kaitlyn Nakanishi. Leila had a say in how songs were staged, offered a second opinion, and coached the performers. She was also the music director and taught everyone their parts for the songs.

Tell us about PUC on Broadway. 

PUC on Broadway is the product of people coming together to try something new. In less abstract words, PUC on Broadway is a production where the performers perform different songs from different Broadway musicals. Where a musical has one cohesive plot, we take Broadway songs and put them out of context. 

This time, the show was completely student-directed, student-produced, and student-performed. A lot of students in our show were first-time performers, so it was really cool to be someone who watched them grow.

What inspired you to join?

At first, I got involved because of Kaitlyn. She’s my friend and the show seemed like fun, so why not? This time, I knew I wanted to create opportunities for people that didn’t exist before. That was Jericho Road for me; I didn’t have a theater program where I grew up. 

I didn’t know how fun performing onstage in that context would be. Some students are like me. Others have thought about being a part of a production and never could bring themselves to audition. I wanted to create a space with low stress and fun for all.

How did the idea of PUC on Broadway come about? 

PUC on Broadway is Kaitlyn Nakanishi’s brainchild. Just two weeks after Jericho Road, she put up posters advertising auditions. She invited me to be a part of the creative team, and we hit the ground running from there. We held the show in the spring quarter last year, and it was a hit! We knew we wanted to do it again, so that’s why it made its return this year. 

We want to create a culture of musical theater here. Kaitlyn was the co-director, producer, and choreographer for the show. She choreographed every single movement. I was also involved in the production of the show; I was the other co-director and the musical director. Ronnie Zanella, our new music professor, and Mika Palitang, a junior biology and music major, were our accompanists. Jeremy Hadley and his team were our sound and lighting crew.

How long did everyone have to prepare? How long were rehearsals?

We held auditions two weeks before Thanksgiving break, and while we had rehearsals between Thanksgiving and Christmas break, we didn’t hit the ground running until we returned to campus for winter quarter. 

In total, we had a couple of months of preparation. Our rehearsals are tricky to name a time. The key selling point of PUC on Broadway is that anyone and everyone is welcome to join and that we will create the rehearsal schedule around your own schedule. That means that Kaitlyn and I had to create a spreadsheet and look and see what times were free for everyone involved in a specific number. We would rehearse in chunks by musical number instead of a two-hour rehearsal where we ran over all the songs all at once. That changed when we made it to the week of the show, where we ran dress rehearsals. 

Those rehearsals would take 3 hours. With the exception of the last week, we were averaging 20 hours a week of rehearsals. It’s important to note that not all of the cast was there for the whole 20 hours! We had it broken up so you would only show up for your song and then leave.

Did you have a favorite song from the performance?

There are so many good songs! Kaitlyn and I clap each other on the back because everything

was so well cast. One of my favorites was Holding Out for a Hero from Footloose. That was our big dance number and it was fun to dance, pose, and sing all at the same time. I had the most fun rehearsing for that one too.

What were the reactions to PUC on Broadway?

People loved it! A lot of people were really impressed with the production value of our show,

especially since we held it at such a nice theater. The best reaction to me is that people want to audition for next year. People took a look at our show and thought, “I could do that. That could be me!” That’s what makes this worth it.

It’s fantastic you all want to create a culture of musical theater at PUC. Who takes the lead in decision making with the musicals? Do you have sponsors or a theater team? 

This theater culture that I’m envisioning is purely based on student vision. We don’t have a theater team that helps take the lead on these decisions. We have club sponsors since PUC on Broadway was a club production, but Kaitlyn Nakanishi and I took the lead on creating that program. 

The reason I said I wanted to create a musical theater culture is because it currently does not exist here. We’re getting off the ground. PUC used to do musicals long before I got here. I’m not sure why the tradition of a yearly musical ended. 

Jericho Road, led by Dr. Lindsay Hayasaka, kickstarted the musical fever again. It’s how I got involved in the Music Department, and I want others to experience that theater bug. People ask me all the time if there’s going to be another musical this year. Right now, it’s very up in the air because we don’t have any official backing. We don’t have a professor who takes the lead over a theater department. This wish for theater culture is entirely student-backed.

How do you and your team plan to create a culture of musical theater at PUC? 

We want to create more productions and opportunities for people to get involved and see what musical theater is all about. We want it to be expected that there will be a musical done every year. I think it’s possible because a lot of people love the arts here. The community members love music and arts. The students love music and arts. Musicals are a great way to engage both of those populations. 

We’re more than just a school with a good nursing program and a good number of medical school commitments. Our SOAPH is strong! By creating more productions and taking people to see shows, we can show what we’re capable of! 

Will there be another PUC on Broadway next year?

Absolutely! I can’t wait to see who auditions!