Show goes on for Pacheco theater students after teacher’s arrest

Pacheco High School senior Alex Parker stroked his Lord Farquaad hair to the side as he rehearsed a line from the school Thespian Society’s spring production, “Shrek The Musical,” on Tuesday.

“Fiona, Lord Farquaad here,” Parker said in a deep voice during a dress rehearsal. “But you can call me Maximus, as I don’t doubt you already will. Woof.”

The production this year is an adaptation of the popular animated movie series, “Shrek.”

Parker, the rest of the 25-member cast and all the backstage crew members have tirelessly worked amid major upheaval this year stemming from the arrest of their longtime producer and teacher, Gary A. Bettencourt.

Bettencourt, 40, and his 22-year-old girlfriend, Devyn M. Egan, were arrested Feb. 3 and charged with having sex with minors. Both defendants have pleaded not guilty. They are set to appear in court May 18, according to Merced County Superior Court records.

Bettencourt has been on leave from the district since October when the allegations surfaced.

The production’s first show was Thursday. Three more shows will be held Friday and Saturday at 6:30 p.m., and Sunday at 2 p.m., at the Pacheco High School Theater.

As students were putting final touches on costumes and rehearsing scenes on stage earlier in the week in preparation for the first showing, it was apparent that the cohesive bond that usually forms between members of the cast wasn’t affected by Bettencourt’s arrest.

“The theater is always a tight-knit family,” Parker said.

But cast members were unsure if the production would be scrapped after Bettencourt’s arrest, said Carissa Shrum, a Los Banos High School senior.

“He, that one person, was our production crew,” Shrum said. “On a technical level, it was terrible having to start from scratch. But for the acting portion of it, it didn’t affect us as much.”

Production director G.B. Blackmon III, who works at Playhouse Merced, said he spoke to the students once about the situation, but hasn’t mentioned it since.

“I blocked everything,” said Blackmon, noting that there was much more work to do after Bettencourt’s arrest. “Honestly, we just kept going.”

“We didn’t know if the production was going to happen,” Shrum said. “But then people started stepping up and saying, ‘No, this is going to happen.’ ”

Thespian Society adviser Julie Regalado, a first-year teacher at Pacheco High School, took over the position and several assignments from Bettencourt, including the drama and digital media classes.

“The kids have adjusted well,” Regalado said. “They’ve been a really good bunch and they support each other.”

Last year, the Thespian Society put on an adaptation of “Les Miserables.” Cast members said the new musical will have references to previous productions.

The Thespian Society’s version shows a “deeper, more vulnerable side of Shrek” while maintaining the comedic elements of the movie, said Parker, who has been participating in productions throughout his high school career.

“The message is: You don’t have to be the same (as everyone else),” said Shrum, who plays several supporting roles.

Preparation for the show was grueling. Nyssa Ramsey-Clarke, a home-schooled student who plays Dragon and one of the Three Blind Mice, said the crew and cast started working after school a couple days per week.

But that has turned into a daily affair in the weeks leading up to the production.

“It has been a great experience, Ramsey-Clarke said. “We made friends and got the chance to know each other.”

This story was originally published April 21, 2016 at 6:36 PM with the headline "Show goes on for Pacheco theater students after teacher’s arrest."