Santa Barbara High School Theatre

Santa Barbara High School Theatre has been performed continously for 104 years, 82 of those years in the same space.  We are a public high school in Santa Barbara, California, and we are dedicated to giving as professional experience to student actors and technicians as is possible--we employ professional designers, choreographers, and musical directors, and currently offer five theatre classes, five choral music classes (including award-winning Acapella and Madrigal Singers), 8 instrumental music classes (including a nationally-recognized Jazz Band), and 5 dance classes.  We offer an array of entertainment from September to June ,in a newly renovated, 800 seat house.

We are proud to partner with the Santa Barbara Theatre Foundation, currently headed by Lana McIntyre ().  This parent-founded and led organization was formed to support the SBHS Theatre Department as we renovate an aging space (to date their efforts have led to the installation of a state of the art sound system, and the replacement of the entire lower floor with new, comfortable seating).  Future plans include a replacement of the light board to accomodate our intelligent lighting, and continued work on the sound system, as well as funding the productions themselves.

                           Peter Pan,  Fall 2007

                      "PETER PAN SPARKLES..."

  "Theatre is alive and well at Santa Barbara High School...this production goes far beyond expectations, and the flying by the lead actors is magical...a work of art!" --Paul Foster Froeming, SANTA BARBARA DAILY SOUND

                              below: The Lost Boys, November 2007, PETER PAN)

                                Tiger Lily and the Tribe, PETER PAN      Fall 2007

 HAIR, Edinburgh Fringe Festival August 2008

Musselburgh, Scotland Train Station: the cast of HAIR
  

                              STILL LIFE WITH IRIS, FALL 2006
             

           CARNIVAL!   Spring,2005 Santa Barbara High School Archive Photo

Who We Are

 OTTO LAYMAN

   The current Performing Arts Department Chair, Otto has headed the Theatre Department since 1996.  In that time he has directed HAIR (at the Fringe Festival in Edinburgh, Scotland)BEAUTY AND THE BEAST; JEFF BARRY: MUSIC FOR A NEW GENERATION (2008); PETER PAN and THE PAJAMA GAME (2007); ON THE TOWN and STILL LIFE WITH IRIS (2006); THE WIND IN THE WILLOWS and CARNIVAL (2005); THE ASH GIRL and COPACABANA (2004); MRS. McTHING and THE WIZARD OF OZ (2003); GENTLEMEN PREFER BLONDES and A TALE OF TWO CITIES (2002); FRIGHT NIGHT and INTO THE WOODS (2001); ALICE IN WONDERLAND (which he also adapted), ONCE IN A LIFTIME and DURANG, DURANG (2000); A HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN FILM, ON THE RAZZLE, and AT THIS EVENING'S PERFORMANCE (1999); YOU CAN't TAKE IT WITH YOU, THE TREEPENNY OPERA, and A NIGHT OF ONE ACTS (1998); ALICE UNDERGROUND, THE MUSICAL COMEDY MURDERS OF 1940 (1997); and THE RAVEN (1996).  A longtime member of the Ensemble Theatre Company as an actor and Playwright in Residence, Mr. Layman received his A.A. in English Literature from San Diego Mesa College (1980); his B.A. in English Literature from UCSB (1982); an M.A. in Creative Writing from Boston University (1987) and a Master's in Education from UCSB (1996).

MIKE MADDEN (Set and Light Design), the resident technical director at the Ensemble Theatre in Santa Barbara. Madden comes to Santa Barbara High School Theatre for his tenth show. His first set design at Santa Barbara High School was Mrs. McThing (2003), follwed by Copacabana! (2004), The Ash Girl (2004), Carnival! (2005), The wind in the Willows (2005), On the Town (2006), Still Life with Iris (2006), Pajama Game (2007), Peter Pan (2007), Beauty and the Beast (2008), and our touring production of HAIR.  Mr. Madden's entire professional life has revolved around technical theatre. Bit by the theatre bug in high school, he went to CSU, Chico, and earned his degree in Theatre Arts.  Along the way, he has designed and teched live theatre all over Northern and Southern California, Ashland, Oregon, and London, England.  He has worked for roughly thirty different companies, and hundreds of shows as anything from deck hand to technical director, from designer to voice-over talent.

CHRISTINA McCARTHY (Choreographer/Fight Coordinator), a graduate of Santa Barbara High School, is currently the Assistant Director of Santa Barbara Dance Theatre. She has taught ballet and modern dance at UCSB and in numerous private studios in Santa Barbara. Before the birth of her two sons, Malcom and Nolan, Ms. McCarthy worked as a dancer with the Nina Weiner Dance Company in New York and with the Snata Barbara Dance Theatre. In addition to her dance pursuits, she is a professional potter and puppet maker. Her puppets have been seen in productions by the Ensemble Theatre, Genesis West Theatre Company, and Dos Pueblos High School. Ms. McCarthy recently choreographed productions of HAIR (2008); Beauty and the Beast (2008), The Pajama Game (2007), Peter Pan (2007), On the Town (2006), The Wind in the Willows (2005), The Ash Girl (2004), Copacabana (2004), and The Wizard of Oz (2003) at SBHS.

LISA LANGE (Costumer Emeritus) is back with the Santa Barbara High School Theatre Department, and not a moment too soon...Lise's work was last seen in Peter Pan (2007), and Beauty and the Beast(2008).  Before a stint teaching in Oxnard, Lise was the costume designer for Mr. Layman's first year at Santa Barbara High School,designing The Raven (1996) and Little Shop of Horrors (1997). She has also designed Into the Woods, Fright Night, A Tale of Two Cities, Gentlemen Prefer Blondes and The Wizard of Oz for the SBHS Theatre Department.

JUNNO INUI (Costumer) is back at SBHS designing A VILLAGE FABLE after a stint at the School of Design.  Junno is a graduate of SBHS, where she designed Wind in the Willows (2005) and On the Town (2006).

MELISSA "WAFFLES" CRONSHAW (Production Stage Manager), In her senior year at Santa Barbara High School, she has Stage Managed for Peter Pan (2007), BEAUTY AND THE BEAST (2008), and  on the touring production of HAIR. She did hair and was the general Go-To girl for Pajama Game (2007), and Performed in Still Life with Iris (2006). She has always felt at home in the theatre, attending Mr. Layman's classes since freshman year, and hopes to find a new theatre to call home: she graduated in June 2008, but remains in an advisory capacity, training a new generation of stge managers.