‘Treasure Island’ opens its doors at Cuesta in May

Cuesta College’s production of “Treasure Island” is currently finishing up tech week before opening its doors starting May 9 at CPAC. 

The experimental theater production will run two weekends, from May 9 to 18. While tickets at this time are limited, Cuesta’s box office will open up any available student tickets to the general public on May 1. 

With rehearsals starting only in mid-March, the more-than-20 cast members have been rehearsing in Cuesta’s CPAC space for many hours to bring Robert Louis Stevenson’s book about pirates and adventure to life, and to make the classic story immersive and thrill-seeking for every audience member attending. 

One key change that makes Cuesta’s production different from the others is the choice to change the gender of the story’s main character, Jim Hawkins. 

“I saw the National Theater production that was done in London,” Cuesta’s “Treasure Island” Director bree valle said. “It was mesmerizing because it’s the first time I’ve seen a production of ‘Treasure Island,’ where they switched the gender of Jim, and there are so few children’s stories with a lead female that goes on an adventure and overcomes those kinds of obstacles. So I found that to be very appealing.” 

The lead actor of the performance, Amani Arellano, is a second-year theater arts major at Cal Poly, and was handpicked by bree valle to embody the character, Jim Hawkins, in Cuesta’s performance. 

“I’ve done lots of shows, but bree is a very unique director, and I’ve already learned so much,” Arellano said. “It’s just a whole different style, and commitment level too, which is going to make a much better product. So I’m very excited about it.” 

valle talked about how meeting Arellano helped her decide the direction of the production. 

“I had seen her in a show at Cal Poly, and so I knew that there was a possibility of having an actor that could play that role,” valle said.  “I auditioned people last fall, and she showed up for an audition. So I knew at that point that I could do the show. When you have an actor that can do a certain role, it’s not very common.” 

Many actors in the play expressed how audience members might not realize the commitment and preparation that goes into creating a production like “Treasure Island.” 

“We had to take some fencing classes so a lot of us could learn how to wield swords,”  actor and Cuesta alum Sophia Velasquez said. “We had to really learn how to use weapons accurately, and how to carry in different positions, and it was really exciting. It was something that really drew me into this.” 

The set designer Richard Jackson and first-year technical theater major Bridget Aggen, discussed how lighting the set, and creating the costumes takes a lot of time and commitment to complete. When finished, the story feels even more captivating. 

“The audience may not even be aware of how much comes from the lighting,” Jackson said. “The lights are our paint brushes. So imagine making hundreds of paintings, and it takes forever.”

“I’m helping out with some of the costumes. I made a hat from scratch for one of the characters, that was my big project,”  Aggen said. “I also helped make some of the sets…I think this production is really unique because it’s going to be more immersive than your regular theater.”

valle also mentioned that there was an accent coach present for the actors to help enhance the character performances even more. 

“All of the characters are either from the UK or Spain, France, Italy…we also have an actor who only speaks Filipino for 90% of the show,” valle said. “So all of those people had to learn how to say their lines with that accent.” 

Others also articulated how much athleticism one needs to have when performing on productions like “Treasure Island.” 

“Most people don’t realize how athletic actors are,” actor Harlow Winterfire said. “You have to be in the best shape of your life. You have to feed yourself well, and take vitamins, I mean, there’s so much to maintain.” 

Many actors also expressed their gratitude towards valle’s leadership, dedication, creativity and how the production is special due to her directing. 

“It doesn’t even matter, whatever bree makes, I know it’s gonna be amazing,” Winterfire said. “For me, it’s a yes before I even know the details. I’ve been an actor for a really long time, and bree is known by reputation. If you want to make amazing art, then you want to work with bree valle.”

“bree likes to challenge us, and likes to make sure that we go out of our comfort zone and we’re very vulnerable,” Velasquez said. “She likes to make sure we are taking the extra mile. Literally, we run a mile before every rehearsal.” 

 “Any production she does where it’s based off of a book, she really wants every single actor to know the book back and forth,” actor and student Quentin Montoya said. “She really cares about that subconscious aspect of what the author originally intended, and then melding that into something really beautiful.” 

With more tickets being available for purchase on May 1, “Treasure Island’s” cast and crew have devoted their time and effort to creating a performance that is worth attending and seeing. 

“Extending the show into the shop, where people don’t normally come and see a show, finding out how to rig up the lights, how to do this set and how to do all those tech aspects in something that isn’t a traditional theater,” production assistant and sound operator Alexa Owen said. “It has been fun, but challenging at the same time.”

 “Imagining the show with an audience has been one of the coolest parts,” second-year theater major and actor Olivia Cusick said. “We’re rehearsing without an audience, and the audience movement and incorporation into the show is a big part that I’m really excited to explore in these next two weeks.” 

For more information on purchasing available tickets, visit Cuesta College’s CPAC website.