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P.O. Box 1171
Lancaster, California 93584
3E ~3<::::::>E 3E~3E
Owl and the Bear 2019
BY MUSEUM CURATOR I, PEGGY RONNING
A total of 33 people enjoyed this year's
performance of The Owl and the Bear on
Saturday, May 4. Outdoor' plays are always ~t
the mercy of the weather, and the week pnor
to the performance included heat, strong
wind and even a few drops of rain. As the
start' of the play approached at 7:00 pm, it
cooled down to a comfortable temperature,
and most importantly, the wind quit, creating
perfect conditions to view the play.
We had originally hoped to put on the Seven
Sisters play this year, but unfortunately, we
were unable to recruit enough actors (it needs
15). Museum maintenance aide Denny Andreoni
was instrumental in casting this year's play. He
recruited his nephews Austin Szintai to play
Coyote and Blake Bonafede to play the lead .
rabbit. Although Blake is too young to read, h1s
mother helped him memorize the lines through
oral repetition. Go Mom!
The Cast of Owl and the Bear 2019
April-May-June 2019
Volume 35, Number 2
INSIDE THIS ISSUE PAGE #s
Owl and the Bear 2019 1 - 2
Save the Date - Celebration 2
FAVIM Annual Meeting 2
FAVIM Meeting Speaker Kat High 3
Friends of AVIM Directors 2017-2018 3
AVIM Contact Info & FAVIM Membership 4
http://www. a vim. parks. ca. gov/info. shtm l
Initially, Austin was not enthusiastic about play
rehearsals keeping him away from his video
games. However, by the evening of the
performance, he had become a leader for the
other actors, helping them with their lines and
keeping the younger actors focused.
When it looked like we were not going to have
enough actors to do the play at all, Blake
encouraged his best friend Orayah Stevensen
to join the cast as a second rabbit. The play
really started to come together when Orayah's
big sister Savannah Murga volunteered to take
on the starring role of Muhu the Owl.
We still had three roles to fill, but fortunately,
I met the Batu f amity one Sunday in the
museum. Sienna and Shannon Batu were really
excited to join the play as Deer and Eagle,
respectively.
Finally, we needed a bear, so Blake and
Austin's mom, Chelsie Szintai, recruited
Princess Mayfield, the daughter of one of her
coworkers.