The Diviners
at Tesoro High School

Reviewed on February 3, 2017

Audrey Mitchell
University High School
Submitted for publication to OC Varsity Arts

Tesoro's ‘Diviners' is evocative and emotional
written by Audrey Mitchell, a junior at University High School

In the corner, a girl sobs. A man lies center stage, shoulders heaving, utterly beaten. A horde of townspeople stands in the back, stricken and horrified. Suddenly, the tense silence is broken by a quiet hymn.

Tesoro High School's rendition of ‘The Diviners' is intensely emotional. Profound performances and exquisite technical elements combine to produce a truly moving show.

Carson Preusse tackles a difficult role with childlike exuberance as Buddy, a boy with mental deficiencies and a deathly fear of water after nearly drowning as a child. Preusse speaks in a high, childish voice, referring to himself in the third person. His shoulders are lifted high; hands moving spastically as he skips and leaps across stage. When confronted by a rainstorm, he curls up on the floor in fetal position and clenches his eyes shut.

Matt Davies-Morris is a force to be reckoned with as the disillusioned preacher C.C. Showers. Stepping into the role of a sort of surrogate father for Buddy, Davies-Morris creates genuine connections with the people and environment around him. He enters as a nervous outsider- fiddling with his hat as he searches for a job. He continues to integrate into the town- becoming lovelorn, exasperated, and, ultimately, devastated.

Julia Pacific shines as the tough Jennie Mae. Forced to become the matriarchal figure for Buddy at a young age, Pacific is wary and brisk, maintaining a firm step and a default frown. Pacific softens in her tentative courtship with Showers. Her face lights up and she becomes almost timid as she moves closer towards him.

All elements of the show culminate in the heart-wrenching last scene, as Buddy drowns in a river. Lighting (Adrianna Ciscone) and sound (Juli Nazzario and Tyler Munro) work intricately together to create the underwater: blue gobos slowly swirl and move, evoking a river. Jennie Mae's shrill screams from the riverbank suddenly cut out, leaving only eerie silence. The ensemble moves in slow motion, horrified as they realize what is transpiring. Showers dives underwater— cheeks puffed and movements slowed— only to rise, gasping for air.

Tesoro's ‘The Diviners' slowly builds in intensity- from a light-hearted story about a boy who is afraid of water to an utterly affecting tragedy. Its technical elements and actors alike create a revelatory performance that promises to leave the audience absorbed and ponderous.

Sheridan Mapstone
University High School
Submitted for publication to OC Varsity Arts

The Diviners at Tesoro, Dripping with Talent
written by Sheridan Mapstone, a junior at University High School

A young, barefooted boy walks on stage bathed in a soft cool light, a forked stick in his hands. The crowd around him waits with baited breath until finally, he finds what he was looking for; water.

Ironically aquaphobic Buddy, Carson Preusse, lives with just his father and sister after the same river that left him mentally handicapped claimed his mother. That is, until ex-pastor C.C. Showers, Matt Davies-Morris, blows into town. Showers takes a shine to Buddy and his family as he struggles to start over.

As the dewy-eyed Buddy, Carson Preusse delivers a deeply moving performance. He illustrates Buddy's handicap with respect and accuracy, filling every moment with purposeful energy and meaning. Preusse wrings his hands, shuffles his feet and is never able to stay completely still. With a big childish grin on his face and a spring in his step, he portrays Buddy's innocence and naivety. However, in the moment Buddy must face his fear of water and wash his feet, Preusse tenses his whole body, eyes scrunched tightly and voice quivering, showing his struggle to stay while every bone in his body tells him to run.

Contrasting anxious and childishly jubilant Buddy is smooth talking and deeply passionate C.C. Showers. Matt Davies-Morris plays Showers acutely with purposeful yet subtle glimpses into the true nature of the ex-preacher. As a stranger looking for work, Showers remains levelheaded in voice but his hands tell a different story. Davies-Morris fiddles with his black fedora, dusting it off and occasionally punching it when frustrated. Eventually, as Showers is welcomed into the town, Davies-Morris changes. The apprehensive posture gone, replaced by a more assured stance, his hands on his hips. He never falters in his strong, Kentucky accent even when yelling, which serves to single him out as a stranger.

Illuminating the emotional drama and serving as a replacement for liquid is Adrianna Ciscone's ingenious lighting. Ciscone transforms the edge of the stage into a gentle and peaceful river with the use of cool, blue light and slowly rotating shapes. At the zenith of the show's energy, Ciscone's peacefully babbling river claims a life. As characters dive under the water, technical elements and acting combine, the whole stage slows down, muffled, underwater bubbling is heard, and Ciscone's lights encompass the stage, drowning the scene in the rippling blue of water.

Tesoro High School soaks every inch of this production with ingenuity and insight.

Natalie Patrick
Mission Viejo High School
Submitted for publication to OC Cappies Facebook Page

Tesoro Makes a Splash in "The Diviners"
written by Natalie Patrick, a junior at Mission Viejo High School

Tesoro High School entrances with its production of "The Diviners," a story of people running away from its fears and trying to find happiness.

The play follows Buddy Laymen, played by Carson Preusse, who is terrified of water after almost drowning as a child, his father Ferris, played by Tyler Muno, and his sister Jennie Mae, played by Julia Pacific, as they attempt to help Buddy overcome his fear so he can live a normal life. When C.C. Showers, played by Matt Davies-Morris, arrives to town, he befriends Buddy and helps the boy begin overcoming his fear.

Carson Preusse is fantastic as Buddy; his twisting hands, tight shoulders and high voice transform him into a young, frightened child. When playing in the woods with his sister and C.C., his child-like, adventurous spirit is seen in his twinkling eyes and wide grin, but quickly changes to wide-eyed, paralyzing fear whenever even an ounce of water is in sight.

Equally as impressive is Matt Davies-Morris, the confident and caring C.C. Showers. His rich Kentucky accent and proper manners first separate him from the rest of the town, but as he becomes closer with the Laymans, his stance becomes more comfortable and his smile more whole-hearted. Davies-Morris shows another side of C.C. when with Jennie Mae, played by Julia Pacific, as a bit of romance sparks between them. The two usually serious characters beam when together and are caught more than once glancing into each other's eyes.

The superb technical aspects highlight the impeccable acting and elevate the show to an impressive level. The stage manager, Kira Dawson, has perfect timing and works with lights by Adrianna Ciscone and sound by Julia Nazzario to create magical scenes that mesmerize the audience. When C.C. and Buddy are in the river, crystal-blue hues, sound of slow water and actors moving in slow motion create the illusion that they are swimming underwater. When C.C. goes up for air, the blue cyc lights rush back to the bright, sunny yellow, the slow water becomes a babbling brook, and the actors move at a hasty speed, all in perfect sync. The incredible technical work creates a seamless piece that is extremely impactful.

The mesmerizing technical aspects combined with astonishing acting makes Tesoro's production of "the Diviners" a powerful reminder that people cannot run away from their fears.