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January 4, 2002/20 Tevet 5762, Vol. 54, No. 16
Director wants kids to think
BETH OLSON
Staff Writer
Gerry Cullity, artistic director of Desert Stages Theatre in Scottsdale, is surrounded by current cast members of Desert Stages' productions. Clockwise from back left are Izzy Gilbert, Nicole Damari, Max Nussbaum, Tasha Spear, Haley Johnson, Sydney Lover, Spencer Gilbert and Nicole Cantor.
Photo by Laura Kerrigan
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Think it Through.
The name of Ensuring Tomorrow Productions' original production about teen abstinence sums up Gerry Cullity's goal for his touring health musicals.
Cullity, artistic director and founder of Desert Stages Theatre in Scottsdale and artistic director, writer and lyricist for Ensuring Tomorrow Productions, currently oversees three productions designed to get teens thinking about public health issues - "Think it Through Revue," "Tobacco: The Musical" (anti-tobacco use) and "Just Stop!" (anti-violence).
Through the musicals, designed to be performed in front of school groups, Cullity hopes to get children thinking and talking - the keys, he believes, to positive behavior choices.
"They're not preachy shows, but they do try to get young people to think outside of their confined ways and give them new options and possibilities," explains Cullity. "They may go home and talk about these issues with their parents. If these issues get talked about ... then that's how change can happen. It cannot happen for one person sitting in a room and brooding."
Later this month, Cullity will receive the Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Living the Dream Award, presented by the Phoenix Human Relations Commission.
The award recognizes people "who embody the ideals of Dr. King through their personal commitment to human relations and justice," according to the commission's literature.
Cullity says he is both flattered and surprised at the award: "It's a real honor."
While this is the most recent award, this is not the first time Cullity has been honored for his work. In November, he was named Arts Advocate of the Year by the Phoenix Business Volunteers for the Arts. Cullity, Desert Stages Theatre, and Ensuring Tomorrow Productions' founder Dr. Sue Sisley have received over a dozen awards in the past two years, from a Hon Kachina Volunteer Award to a President's Daily Point of Light Award.
The ideas for the "Think it Through Revue" musical came from a workshop that was held with 50 children of various backgrounds who hailed from across the Valley. While Cullity says he expected to hear a lot of giggles and stories about how sex made teens feel grown up, he was shocked to discover the pain involved in their stories.
"I started hearing stories about date rape at 12 years old and incest. I started hearing about horrible pressures and demands from children that are 10 and 11 years old. Many of these children were children that I knew and I had no clue. It was a shock to me. I had no idea that this was going on or that sexuality had become such a travesty in their lives."
He says the abstinence show has been the most controversial and that parents don't want other people to talk to their kids about sex. Cullity feels this is a big mistake.
"Parents that think it isn't happening are wrong. I was wrong. ...This is not some other people," he emphasizes. "These are our children in Scottsdale, Mesa, Tempe, Ahwatukee, Glendale. These are our kids."
"Tobacco: The Musical" has proved to be the most successful of the health shows. The show has been performed all over the country, including all across Arizona. Supported by the National Legacy Foundation and the Arizona Department of Health, the show toured rural counties in Arizona as an educational outreach program.
Jessica Berman, a 13-year-old student at The King David School, was part of the premiere cast of the musical. Berman says she received lots of positive response from teachers and students.
"I liked trying to change people's lives in a good way," Berman explains.
Recently, the tobacco show, which now has several full casts, was presented to the National Conference of Attorney Generals in Kansas City, and traveled to Louisiana, where it played for more than 10,000 school children.
The tobacco show takes a new approach to tackling the issue with children. Cullity says the production focuses on a girl researching tobacco for a school report. The other actors present pieces of information, from historical facts about tobacco to tactics used by big tobacco companies to manipulate the American market.
"I never actually knew how bad tobacco really was for you," says Berman. "We learned so much about it."
The most recent show is "Just Stop!" Focusing on anti-violence, the show uses multimedia to tackle issues of violence among young people - a video screen is used in addition to singing, dancing and acting. The show premiered in Washington, D.C., in March, and has also been presented at the Orpheum Theater in Phoenix and for 20,000 children in Indiana. Cullity says touring the show is difficult because of the expense of the equipment involved.
The health shows are only one part of Cullity's involvement in local theater. In the six years since Desert Stages' founding, Cullity has directed approximately 10 children's shows per year, as well as half as many shows for adults. He estimates that he uses 800-1,500 young people a year in his productions - from his own creations to classic musicals.
Seven-year-old Haley Johnson, a second-grade student from Boulder Creek Elementary, has already performed in six of Desert Stages' musicals, including her favorite, "The Ugly Duckling."
"It's fun because lots of people watch you and there's fun costumes and there's fun songs," says Johnson.
Nicole Damari, an 11-year-old student at Pardes Jewish Day School, also likes being on stage.
"I like to have the attention of the audience and I like when everyone is looking at me," she says. "I think it's fun and challenging to be up there and remember what to do, and I like challenges."
Damari also enjoys the camaraderie at the theater.
"I really enjoy it because I feel like I'm really committed to something and I'm really part of a group there," Damari explains. "It's really fun to be there because everyone knows what they're supposed to do and everyone wants to be there."
Berman believes Cullity helps cultivate the positive atmosphere in the theater.
"I like how it's like a big open family and how (Gerry) lets everyone have a chance on having the parts."
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