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As we look back at David’s first year at LACHSA, we realize what this experience is going to mean to him as he progresses along his artistic path. David is with peers that share his passion for theater, dance, and music. They embrace his joy of singing and dancing and encourage him to express himself. This would not have happened at a “normal” high school. At the end of their first year, the LACHSA Theater Department presented friends and family with their first-year project- “A Sense of Hope”, an emotional voyage through shock, pain, and anguish as experienced by the Japanese victims of Hiroshima, Nagasaki, and the American internment camps.

It was a fantastic performance that left us breathless and speechless. David had small roles in the production, but was thrilled to be a part of such a moving and meaningful piece.

Here is a video of the entire performance, which is an hour and sixteen minutes long (!) Enjoy it, if you dare…

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Last week, David took the stage at the beautiful San Gabriel Civic Auditorium as one of Joseph’s brother’s in CTE’s production of the Broadway biblical hit- Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat. This was David’s first lead role with the CTE theater group and boy did he make the most of it! His role was Judah, also known as the Calypso Brother, who tries to convince Joseph to spare his wrath against another of the brothers by serenading him with a colorfully sultry song and dance:

Not only did David have the spotlight for the Calypso number, he was also given a solo curtain call during the Mega Mix at the end of the show:

The amazing thing about David’s performance was the fact that the morning of the show, he came down with the flu and performed with a 103-degree temperature, a sore throat, and a chest infection! But being the consummate professional that he is, no one could tell. We’re hoping that David’s performance caught the attention of the producer and director as much as it did the audience. The next CTE show is High School Musical, and we can’t wait to see more of him in the spotlight!

Click here to see more pictures from the show!

Shamir Merino

Well, the wait is finally over. After 2 months of anticipation, David’s dream finally came to a reality. He was accepted into the Los Angeles High School of the Arts (Arts High). For those of you who don’t know, Arts High is a public school in the Los Angeles School District as is located on the Cal-State LA campus. It has an excellent reputation for its art curriculum ranging from dance, to theater, to music, to visual arts. Due to limited space, kids have to apply and audition to Arts High, who accepts students from all over Los Angeles County.

David auditioned for the Theater Department, one of the most popular programs at the school. There are only 45 freshman accepted into the school, and there were over 175 applicants. Each applicant had to memorize and perform two monologues in front of a panel. The fist monologue was a Shakespeare monologue from Twelfth Night. The second monologue could be from any contemporary play, but had to be by a character that David could relate with. David chose a monologue from a book of monologues called “Actor’s Choice: Monologues for Teens”, and found an interesting piece from a play by Will Averill called Tales from the Arabian Mice.

After the first audition, the school administration selected around 30 kids for immediate acceptance. David was not among that lucky group. The remaining ~15 spots was up for grabs and a second audition would determine who took those spots. David attended a workshop provided by the school to help him prepare for his second audition. During the second audition, over 100 kids were still applying for the open spots. David felt confident that he nailed his audition, but we were all skeptical of him getting in due to the sheer number of kids still vying for the spots.

Two weeks after the second audition, David got this letter (click to enlarge):

Not only did he make it in, his best friend Sarah also got into the theater program.

So now that he got in, the reality of the situation is sinking it for all of us. David will now have to get to Cal State LA every morning- most likely by metro rail and bus. He will be leaving a significant comfort zone with his friends at Marshall, many of whom he’s known since kindergarten. His school year will have different holidays and breaks than his brothers, and his extra-curricular activities will likely be limited due to an active theater schedule.

This is an exciting time for David, and we’re confident that this is the best move for him. He loves the theater experience so much and he has dreamed of making it a career. This is a great first step as LACHSA alumnus have moved on to many excellent universities with renowned arts programs.

Congrats to you David! We’re all so very proud!

This year, among other things, David has taken the role of “Concertmaster” for Marshall Fundamental’s Intermediate Orchestra. He is first-chair violin and based on his skill and leadership he was chosen to be the Concertmaster for the various performances throughout the year. This month’s Pasadena All-District Music Festival was David’s first fully functional Concertmaster performance:

For those who don’t know what a Concertmaster is… (like me a couple of weeks ago), they have the pleasure of being able to tune the orchestra or band at rehearsals and performances, and also come on stage individually. They will walk onto stage prior to performing, take a bow, and receive applause on behalf of the ensemble.

Here is a picture of David at this year’s Pop’s Concert, where Marshall’s orchestra and band played pieces from popular movies and televesion shows:

This past weekend, we experienced three wonderful hours of musical theater, not once, but twice. David participated in Pasadena Jewish Temple and Center’s musical theater production of Music Man.

Although one would expect a low-budget, community-based, volunteer-driven production to flop harder than a Sunday morning sitcom, as it has before, PJTC has risen above expectations and produced a splendid rendition of a Broadway Musical. From the talented, mostly Temple-member orchestra, to the incredibly detailed costumes and makeup, to the near-professional acting and singing, to the fun and flashy choreography- everything went without a hitch.

This was David’s first lead role in the more than 9 plays he’s participated in, and he really showed us what he’s made of. He danced, he sang, and he acted his way into everyone’s heart.

For more pictures from the performance, click here. I’m sure you’ll understand if most of the pictures are featuring my own son…

Shamir Merino