June 19, 2008

Presentation High presents ‘Dream Street’

What happens when a girl in a wheelchair finds herself in a world filled with singing, dancing cars? That's the premise behind “Dream Street,” a one-act musical making its Bay area premiere at Presentation High School through June 21.

The show is the brainchild of performing arts director Jim Houle as part of the school's third annual "Page2Stage" summer theater program, in which high school students take a production from concept to completion in just two weeks.

Playing the lead role of Hope, a wheelchair-bound girl who yearns to liberate her dreams and find her place in the world, is 23-year-old Jenny Hillebert.

Playing the lead role of Hope, a wheelchair-bound girl who yearns to liberate her dreams and find her place in the world, is 23-year-old Jenny Hillebert of Suisun City, a vocal savant with a four-octave range who has been performing in public since the age of 8. In a case of art imitating life, Hillebert is disabled, suffering from moderate mental retardation, hydrocephalus, epilepsy, partial blindness in her right field of vision and mild cerebral palsy from a stroke--all the result of a traumatic brain injury at age 4 months.

Hillebert recently completed her second year of attendance at Berkshire Hills Music Academy near Springfield, Mass. The academy is the country's only post-secondary transition school for cognitively impaired people who are musically talented.

"Savant Syndrome" is a rare, spectacular condition in which persons with serious mental disabilities possess an "island of genius" that stands in marked, incongruous contrast to their overall handicap. The appearance of an unusual talent or skill in the non-autistic mentally disabled population is very rare--between 1 in 1,000 to 1 in 2,500. Current research has demonstrated that when afforded the opportunity to enhance their talent, savants show significant progress in areas outside of the narrow focus of that talent.

When Houle originally conceived Dream Street back in 1992, he made a promise to himself to reserve the part of Hope for an actor or actress with a disability. "Opportunities for such performers tend to be limited, so it was just the right thing to do," he said. "In Jenny's case, she is actually able-bodied, so the wheelchair is symbolic of her other conditions."

"A person in a wheelchair," he continued, "is like the talking and singing vehicles in this play. She lives in a world of metal and wheels. Fortunately, Hope discovers that these 'accessories' don't define or confine her, but rather give her the freedom to pursue her dreams."

Dream Street is being staged in the Valenzuela Theater on the Presentation campus. There will be two morning performances on June 19 and 21 at 11 a.m. and afternoon performances on June 20 and 22 at 2 p.m.

Tickets are $10 for adults, and $5 for children and students, with discounts available for groups of 10 or more. They can be ordered online from the school's Web site at www.pres-net.com. Presentation is happy to arrange for wheelchair accommodations. Simply call (408) 264-1664, Extension 2455.