Student variety show in Ventura raises money for Japanese earthquake survivors Accelerated Learning Resources

Student variety show in Ventura raises money for Japanese earthquake survivors

Chuck Kirman / The Star One Wish cast dancers perform Saturday in the One World Variety Show Benefit for victims of the devastating earthquake and tsunami in Japan. Performance Theatre for Young Artists presented the musical variety show.

As 15-year-old Aysen Tan took the stage to play the piano before an audience of more than 100 at the Poinsettia Pavilion in Ventura, he couldn’t help but think of an even larger group of people more than 5,000 miles away.

“I want to play well for the earthquake victims in Japan and, hopefully, the audience will donate more,” he said.

Tan, a Japanese-American student at Foothill Technology High School, was one of about 50 students who participated in “One World,” a musical theater variety show held Saturday night in Ventura to benefit earthquake victims in Japan.

The benefit, organized by Marta Dewey, director of Performance Theatre for Young Artists, raised more than $1,750. The money will be sent to Direct Relief International to help earthquake survivors in Japan, Dewey said.

“I’m so proud of these kids,” Dewey said. “They love to perform and for them to know what they’re doing is going to be helping people in need is a wonderful thing.”

During the show, students performed song and dance numbers from musicals ranging from “Les Miserables” to “Rent” and song selections ranging from opera to pop genres. Participants varied in age from a 7-year-old girl who sang “Ave Maria” to a mother who accompanied her daughter in a duet.

Performance Theatre for Young Artists is a nonprofit organization that offers workshops and theater programs for children, so they can build acting, singing, dancing, technical theater and performance skills. The group puts on four plays a year and variety shows. This is the first time since 9/11 that the performers have used their talents for a disaster relief fundraiser.

Dewey got the idea after watching news coverage of the earthquake and tsunami devastation.

“I just felt so bad for all those people,” she said. “The damage was so extensive and it just seemed to get worse and worse. I thought we should do something to raise some money because we have all these talented young people.”

Dewey said she chose Direct Relief International because all of the money donated will go directly to the cause. The Santa Barbara-based organization focuses on improving health care for impoverished people and responding to national disasters.

She put out an email asking for volunteers and got almost 50 immediately. It surprised Dewey that so many families were willing to help on the busy Easter weekend.

Students quickly pulled together their acts — some that they’d performed previously and others they created solely for the benefit.

Megan Lenington, 15, a sophomore at Foothill Technology High School, sang two solos and participated in one group number.

“It’s nice to know you can do something you love, give people in the community something fun to see and also help other people on the other side of the world,” she said.

Tan, who has an aunt and uncle living in Tokyo, played a duet from Rossini’s “The Barber of Seville” and a solo piece — Coldplay’s “Viva la Vida.” Before sitting down at the piano, he offered the audience a few heartfelt words.

“I’d like to thank every one of you,” he said. “It means the world to people who live halfway around the world. In Japanese, we say, ‘Domo arigato gozaimasu,’ which means ‘Thank you very much.’”

For more information about PTYA, visit . For more information about Direct Relief International, go to .

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