by Shirley Lorraine

Santa Paula delivers post hiatus

Santa Paula Theatre Center has reopened its doors and raised the proverbial curtains at last with Rapture, Blister, Burn by Gina Gionfriddo. The production was originally planned for 2020 but was put on hold during the Covid crisis that shut performances down county-wide. The actors have hung in there and are now pleased to present this thought-provoking work.

The sizzling 2012 Pulitzer Prize finalist script is filled with smart characters who make dumb (human) decisions, woven throughout a discourse and exploration of the meaning of feminism. The play questions how life might have turned out had alternate life routes been taken, how people cope differently with their choices, and the cost some of those choices extract.

Is the grass greener on the other side? Or is it all an illusion, a dream, an unfulfilled wish? Why do we question our choices in retrospect? Is it possible to be content with the choices we made? One resource cites the play as “an unflinching look at gender politics in the wake of 20^th-century feminist ideals.” Heady stuff well presented.

Nimbly directed by Taylor Kasch, the cast features Rosie Gordon, Jessi May Stevenson, Erin Hollander, Susan Muhrer and Ron Feltner.

Jessi May Stevenson is Catherine, a woman who chose a career over a relationship. Coming home to care for her aging mother (Susan Muhrer), she reunites with Gwen (Rosie Gordon) and Don Harper (Ron Feltner), a friend and former boyfriend from college who married after she left for a life of travel and educational fulfillment. The reunion rekindles old feelings probably best kept buried, leading to upheavals all around.

The Harper’s babysitter, Avery (Erin Hollander) adds new dimension to the awkward triangle. Avery’s youthful, open, pragmatic, and accepting perspective adds food for thought, proving to be a much-needed balancing force.

The cast performs as a solid ensemble, presenting with clarity and determination. There is an intermission. Patrons can once again enjoy the “pub” and purchase tickets to perchance win an original piece of artwork by Kasch currently in use on the set.

On a more somber note: It was recently learned that William “Bill” Lucking, one of the founders of the Santa Paula Theatre Center, passed away in October at age 80. A gifted actor, Lucking had recurring roles on several television series. The community is in debt to him and his late partner, actor Dana Elcar, for creating such a warm and welcoming theater center for all to enjoy. Gentlemen, your gift to the community lives on and thrives.

Masks and proof of vaccination are required to attend the performance, per current health department mandates. Discretion is advised as the play features mature themes and strong language.

The run of Rapture, Blister, Burn continues with performances Friday and Saturday at 8 p.m. and Sundays at 2:30 p.m. through November 28. Book online and choose your seats. www.santapaulatheatrecenter, [email protected] or (805) 525-4645. The Center is located at 125 S. 7^th Street, downtown Santa Paula.

Streaming Spotlight by Cindy Summers
Red Notice – Netflix Originals

On their wedding day as a symbol of his undying devotion, Marc Antony presented Cleopatra with 3 bejeweled eggs each one more eqisite than the last. For centuries they were thought to be of myth and rumors, until in 1907 just outside of Cairo a farmer unearthed two of them. Some say the third was never found, others claim it was discovered, but just as quickly lost never to be seen again. Cleopatra’s first egg was put on display in a museum in Rome for all to see. The second egg was sold at auction numerous times and currently was in a private collection.

A very wealthy father in Egypt wanted to give his daughter Cleopatra an unrivaled wedding present and offered $300 million dollars to anyone who could bring him all three eggs. This bounty caught the eye of criminals around the world, among them was world renowned art thief Nolan Booth (Ryan Reynolds). On a tip that Cleopatra’s egg in Rome was going to be stolen by Booth, Inspector Das (Ritu Arya) teamed up with FBI profiler John Hartley (Duane Johnson) to stop him.

Das and Hartley went to the Rome museum and found that they were too late, as the egg on display had already been switched out with a fake but had the luck of spotting Booth in the crowd and gave chase. Booth escaped out a window, down a construction chute, stole a scooter making a clean getaway, almost. When Booth returned to his home in Bali three days later, he found Hartley sitting in his living room.

Das and her team took Booth into custody, but as Hartley got in the truck someone disguised as a swat team member switched the eggs. When Das discovered the egg was a fake, she went and found Hartley, who was on his way to to the airport, and confronted him about the counterfeit egg, an $8 million encrypted wire transfer in a Swiss bank account in his name, and also that she had contacted FBI headquarters who said they had never heard of him.

Das sent Hartley to a black site/prison in Russia, and found Booth was already there.Thinking that The Bishop had to be behind them being caught, Booth explained the $300 million bounty for the 3 eggs, and that another well known art thief known as “The Bishop” must have been aiding Das and behind their capture. They were taken from their cell to the warden’s office where they found The Bishop (Gal Gadot), who explained that she was the one that framed Hartley.

The second egg was owned by an International arms dealer named Sotto Voce, so Booth and Hartley decided to team up with a plan to steal the egg when Voce had his masquerade party at his home in Valencia. Booth created a diversion by causing a small riot and together they escaped, stole a helicopter, then one of Booth’s friends picked them up in a jet and flew them to Valencia to get the second egg.

Hartley saw The Bishop at the party and went after her while Booth went after the egg. Little did they know that The Bishop and Voce had teamed up, but she drugged Voce and took the egg while Booth and Hartley were tied up. After escaping, they headed to Argentina to look for the third egg which was supposedly among the loot in Hitler’s lost bunker, which had yet to be found.

Surprisingly, Red Notice has even more unexpected twists to discover as they all go after the third egg, with plenty of the usual clever, comedic one liners from Ryan Reynolds all along the way.

Rated: PG-13 (Violence and Action|Strong Language|Some Sexual References)
Runtime: 1h 57m

Streaming Spotlight by Cindy Summers
Squid Game – Netflix Original

Set in Seoul, South Korea, Squid Game follows 456 players who, because they were living on the brink of financial ruin, decide to enter a game offering billions to the winner, initially not knowing that the game had deadly consequences. After accepting, players were picked up, gassed and transported to an unknown location. They woke up in a dorm in green track suits with assigned numbers up to 456, while all the staff wore red hooded jackets and pants with a fencing mask having the shape of either a circle, triangle or square painted on the front to indicate their jobs.

The players were told they would play six games over six days and the winners would win a large cash prize. Given a last chance to quit before things began, players then had to sign a “Player Consent Form” which consisted of three clauses: Clause 1 – A player is not allowed to stop playing; Clause 2 – A player who refuses to play will be eliminated; and Clause 3 – Games may be terminated if the majority agrees. Players were then led through a brightly-colored MC Escher stairs labyrinth to the playing field, which looked like an outdoor park with grass and trees painted on the walls and a 10 foot tall girl doll at the far end. The players were told the game was “Red Light-Green Light” and were reminded of the basic rules of the game. Players who didn’t follow the rules would be eliminated, which unknown to the players at the time actually meant shot and killed. When the first few players were shot, many others panicked and kept moving trying to escape and were shot as well, with over two hundred players being eliminated in the first game.

The eliminated players bodies were put in black coffins with pink ribbons and incinerated, and the remaining 201 players returned to the dorm where they were informed that each lost player represented 100,000,000 won toward the cash prize that counting the total players could add up to 45.6 billion won ($38 million). To emphasize the cash prize, money flowed into a giant, clear plexiglass piggy bank on the ceiling for each player that was eliminated. Though the money was very tempting, it seemed that close to half of the players were terrified by the reality of their situation and wanted to end the game, so a vote was called due to Clause 3 of the Player Contract. The players voted 100 to continue and 101 to end the games, so the games were halted, though were told that if a majority decides to resume, the games could begin again.

Most of the players were in serious financial trouble, so 187 decided to restart the games and repeated the secretive process of returning and resuming where they had left off on Game 2, which was to cut out an assigned shape on a thin piece of honeycomb with a small needle without breaking it or be eliminated. All games were timed, and this was set in a playground area where players struggled to gently cut their shapes as other players were being shot all around them.

Not knowing the next game, players were told to divide into teams of ten, and found out the game was Tug-of-War over a giant pit that would eliminate the losing team. Thinking that teaming up was a good thing, players paired off for the 4^th game thinking they were allies only to discover to be pitted against each other in a game of marbles. The trend of offering little information continued to fool players into false alliances and poor choices, eventually pitting two childhood friends against each other in the final Squid Game, which they had played together as children.

Squid Game is the most-watched Netflix series of all time, debuting on the charts at No.1 and in its second week reached a rare 3 billion minutes viewed, being only the sixth title to ever do so.

Rated: TV-MA and contains graphic violence, sexual content and mature themes.
Runtime: 9 – 1hr Episodes

by Shirley Lorraine

Workplace Woes Erupt at the Elite

There’s nothing like live theater. Always a treat, often a surprise, frequently a challenge. The Elite Theatre Company in Oxnard is bursting forth with excitement and new works in this returning season. On stage now is Severance Play, an original work by local playwright Michael Perlmutter. The work was chosen as the Elite’s 2020 Playwright Initiative Winner, and for good reason.

Perlmutter’s works, both onstage and off, are always insightful, intelligent and instilled with layers of nuance. Severance Play, billed as a black comedy, certainly fills the bill.

Staged in the round, this play in one act is riveting, explorative and hilarious. Brian Robert Harris directed a trio of highly capable actors, Brian Kolb, Kimberly Demmary and Maddie Boyd, in this fast-paced crisis-driven peek into the workplace of a small chemical company presented with severe challenges both on and below the emotionally charged surface.

The setting is highly detailed. Theater seats have been removed to accommodate desks, filing cabinets, steno chairs and computers. The computers are used and loaded with proper company logo and information. The white board is used. Employees get coffee. You feel you are really in an office setting.

Audience members are directed to socially acceptable spaced seating both on the actual stage and the usual audience seating area. Staging in the round can be extremely awkward and challenging. This production has achieved almost optimal viewing, from my perspective. The actors take every opportunity to present to all areas of the audience, using natural transitions effortlessly.

All three actors are superb in their portrayals. Kolb ramps up his character to a fever pitch while remaining understandable. I was exhausted just watching him. Demmary remained the “cool customer” throughout, controlling the situation with well-timed reactions and inflections. Boyd too, added just the right amount of youthful naivete laced with bravado to offer a solid character.

The writing is tight. Every word adds importance to the whole. The storyline starts with an explosive revelation and reveals layer after layer of additional background throughout for each of the characters. At times all the actors are speaking at once and it still completely makes sense. (If it were a musical, they would all be singing in counterpoint)

The very last moment, in my opinion, wasn’t a solid clincher moment. However, I left with a feeling of having seen something rather remarkable. After all the actors had been through, I understood the need to end on a laugh.

Bravo to writer Perlmutter, who continues to bring thoughtful, fresh ideas to the stage, and to the Elite for staging this challenging work. The play is filled with adult language and content, so discretion is advised.

Severance Play runs through November 21 Fridays and Saturdays at 8 p.m., Sundays at 2 p.m. Reservations are necessary as seating is limited due to social restrictions. (805) 483-5118, www.TheElite.org. Masks and proof of vaccination are required, per current county mandates.

Streaming Spotlight by Cindy Summers
Dopesick – Hulu Original

Dopesick is based on true events that happened surrounding the origins of the opioid crisis and how it created spikes in crimes and overdose deaths across the country.

Purdue Pharmaceuticals was the manufacturer of MS Contin, a strong pain reliever used in the 80’s used to treat severe pain. During this time, the medical industry was not focused on any type of pharmaceutical innovations for those experiencing moderate long term pain, generally prescribing Tylenol and Motrin for these conditions. Richard Sackler (Michael Stuhlbarg) was the head of family-owned Purdue Pharma and decided to commit the entire company’s fortune on developing a moderate pain reliever that could be sold long term.

The company was successful in creating an opiate that was time released, claiming that would diminish the euphoric effects and a claimed 1% addiction rate, so garnered special labeling by the FDA as being non-addictive. By the mid 90’s, Purdue had developed and began distributing OxyContin with an aggressive marketing campaign targeted mainly in rural communities where things like mining injuries were common. Dr. Samuel Finnix (Michael Keaton) worked in a small coal mining town called Finch Creek where many of his patients had received work injuries in the mines that often resulted in long term moderate pain, so was the perfect target for Billy Cutler (Will Poulter) who was a member of the huge sales force hired by Purdue.

Purdue salesmen were trained to focus on OxyCotin’s special labeling by the FDA, being the only Schedule 2 narcotic to claim to not be a non-addictive opiate. They bought flowers and offered manicures to receptionists to gain access to doctors who they gave free samples and offered free getaway weekends in Arizona to listen to pain relief experts about industry innovations, specifically the redirect to focus on pharmaceutical solutions of long term moderate pain under the guise of thinking it was not OK to let people live with pain.

Dr. Finnix seemed to care greatly for his patients, some of whom he even brought into the world, and as a small town doctor often made house calls and responded whenever needed. He agreed to try OxyContin with some of his patients, and all had significant pain relief and results. One was a young woman named Betsy Mallum (Kaitlyn Dever) who recently injured her back on a mine car, the other a man who had shoulder issues for more than six years. Unknown to Dr. Finnix, Betsy was experiencing withdrawal symptoms even though the drug was said to be non-addictive.

Bridget Meyer (Rosario Dawson) was working for the DEA, and began to notice increases in burglaries, thefts, prostitution and child abandonment, and was able to correlate the facts and timeline to being directly caused by OxyContin. Around the same time two federal investigators, Rick Mountcastle (Peter Sarsgaard) and Randy Ramseyer (John Hoogenakker) were looking into Purdue’s special authorization from the FDA and some verifiable statistics that a large number of people were overdosing on OxyContin, as well as seeing it’s effects on increasing crimes across the board in areas where it was heavily distributed.

The first three episodes premiered on the same night, giving viewers a basic sense of the overall situation as it progressed from the mid 1980’s to mid 2000’s. Airs Tuesday nights 9pm on Hulu.

Rated: TV-MA for Some Violence, Drug Misuse, and Language Throughout.

Runtime: 8 – 1hr Episodes

October Spirits Abound

Santa Paula Theatre Center’s annual Ghostwalk has arisen once again. Closed last year due to the pandemic (even ghosts can get Covid), the popular October event is back on this year. Held in a different location each season, this year’s event starts and ends at the SPTC location itself, 125 S. 7th Street, Santa Paula, with much of the tour traversing nearby Ebell Park.

Tours led by enthusiastic ghost-hosts depart every 15 minutes from the main entrance. Along the way, patrons make six stops, meeting up with spirits who are speaking from the other side of the grave, telling the tales of their demise. Among the tales are sprinkled bits of Santa Paula history and familiar areas.

The tales are all family friendly, spooky, and fascinating. All ages will delight with this walk into the dark October night. Primarily the walkers stand throughout the performances, although a few chairs are provided at each stop. This year’s tour is not wheelchair accessible and takes about an hour and a bit, concluding once again at the theater building.

Ghostwalk tours are by reservation – www.ghostwalk.com or (805) 525-3073. Choose your tour time online. Masks are required and warm clothing is encouraged as evening falls swiftly. Performances are Friday and Saturday and Sunday evenings through October 30, with one Thursday, the 28th.

Halloween Radio Dramedy
The award-winning Every Now and Then Theatre’s 33rd year brings a Halloween mystery to the radio on NewsTalk 1590 KVTA on October 30 and October 31.

An original mystery “Shorty Cut Across” will be presented, hosted by former San Diego Charger running back Chuck Muncie. The commercial-free airing features numerous local talents well known to loyal audiences.
Always a well-crafted story and outstanding production, Every Now and Then Theatre this year will attempt to solve the energy crisis. Interspersed with the story will be snippets of “history on filling stations and surprising research on a future fuel possibility that could send OPEC packing.”

Tune in on Saturday October 30 at 2 p.m. or 9 p.m., or Sunday, October 31 at 9 a.m., 1 p.m., 4 p.m. or 7 p.m. The nationwide broadcast will be accessible via the KVTA website by clicking on “Listen Live.”

by Shirley Lorraine

October offers advice and thrills

Ojai Art Center Theatre has opened Tiny Beautiful Things, based on the book by American author Cheryl Strayed (perhaps best known for her memoir Wild) and adapted for stage by Nia Vardalos (My Big Fat Greek Wedding). The play chronicles a true and fascinating period in Strayed’s life – one in which she ventures into the unknown with no small amount of trepidation.

Strayed apparently was a fan of an online literary magazine called The Rumpus and followed the advice column called Dear Sugar. At some point Sugar decided to retire and offered the position to Strayed. Despite knowing nothing about writing an advice column, Strayed agreed and became the new Dear Sugar.

Instead of offering direct advice, Strayed related applicable experiences from her own life to show the letter writers how she had coped with or overcome a situation. A compilation of these actual letters and her responses are what make up the book and the play.

Lynn Van Emmerik carries the bulk of the piece, portraying Dear Sugar in all her circular glory, from confusion to confidence. She is aided by a Greek chorus of three women, all dressed in black, who become the embodiment of the various letter writers. Elektra Cohen, Ashley Osler, and Isobel Roth all take on myriad personas to challenge the columnist. The result is a panoply of introspections, revelations, and realizations all around.
The letters are real, as are the situations. Due to strong language and addressing sensitive subjects head-on such as sexual assault, child abuse, death/suicide and infidelity, discretion in attendance is highly advised. As Director Bob Blough states in the program, “It is not a play for the faint-hearted. Stay with it and it will lead you to wonder, forgiveness and joy. But first it deals with the awful realities of life.”

There is also a good measure of light-heartedness, even humor, in how every situation is addressed. Presented in one 90-minute act, the audience becomes drawn into the plights and challenges, rooting for both the letter writers and the columnist, who is graphically relaying her own struggles with life. The ensemble works cohesively, each bringing both serious and playful elements to their roles.

A two-story home interior setting provides a warm, familiar, settling background to the cacophony of issues that assault her. As she sits at her kitchen table with her laptop, the consistent ping of incoming mail alternately gives her focus and a feeling of overwhelming responsibility to the letter writers. Emmerik conveys that internal pressure to the audience unapologetically.

The Art Center Theatre is busy planning their next season. The multi-talented Tracey Williams Sutton has recently taken on the role of Artistic Director for the theater so stay tuned for what promises to be a season of renewal.

Tiny Beautiful Things is playing through October 24, 2021, on Fridays and Saturdays at 7:30 p.m., Sundays at 2 p.m. (805)640-9897 or wwww.ojaiact.org for pricing and tickets.

Masks and proof of vaccination are required. Safety protocols are in place.

Streaming Spotlight by Cindy Summers
Y: The Last Man – FX on Hulu
3 out of 4 palm trees

Y: The Last Man is based on DC Comics’ acclaimed series by Brian K. Vaughan and Pia Guerra, a 60-issue science fiction comic book series published in 2002 in which a worldwide event kills every male mammal on the planet but for one cisgender man and his pet monkey. This plunges the entire planet into a post-apocalyptic world full of dystopian realities.

For some unknown reason, every man in the world died of some sort of plague all on the same day, leaving women to assume the roles previously held by men who were no longer alive. The many deaths in the chain of command for the United States government left Senator Jennifer Brown (Diane Lane) in charge. That very same day Agent 355 (Ashley Romans) was sent out on her first day to guard the president, and when the chain of command changed, she informed President Brown that she was at the service of whatever sitting president.

There was chaos everywhere caused by the instantaneous death of men such as planes falling from the sky and mass casualty car pileups, which also killed many women. All normal operations had gone offline, including power, and those left in the cities began to protest and riot in an effort to gain answers to what had happened thinking somehow the government was involved. President Brown gathered a team of dedicated women and setup to get some basic resources online while also try to find the cause and deal with the outcome of this cataclysmic event.

President Brown had a daughter named Hero (Olivia Thirlby) who she had strained relations with and was a paramedic in New York. Hero was traveling on foot with her friend Sam (Elliot Fletcher), who was transgender and experiencing prejudice due to looking like a man. Hero refused to reach out to her mother for any assistance, and had not even contacted her since the event. President Brown sent Agent 355 to retrieve Hero and bring her back to the White House.

When Agent 355 returned she didn’t have Hero, but did have Yorick (Ben Schnetzer), President Brown’s son, which seemed impossible as it was believed that all mammals with a Y chromosome on the planet had died. Yorick also had his pet Capuchin monkey Ampersand with him, which also seemed miraculous as he was also male. Though President Brown was overjoyed to see her son, the situation presented a huge number of issues, including some believing it could be used as validation for the public’s conspiracy theories regarding government involvement in the event.

Agent 355 convinced President Brown that it was too dangerous for her son to be discovered there, and agreed to secretly get him to a geneticist and cloning expert Dr. Allison Mann (Diana Bang) in Boston who they believed could shed some light on why Yorick and Ampersand were still alive. Unfortunately the only lab that had what Dr. Mann needed was in San Francisco.

While this was happening it was discovered that former cabinet secretary Regina Oliver was alive in Israel, having been injured and in a coma since the event. She of course was looking to return to run the country rightfully in the line of succession, and had very conservative views similar to those of the recently deceased president and in direct opposition to those of President Brown.

Season 1: 9 – 50min episodes

by Shirley Lorraine

Conejo Players now live on stage!

Conejo Players opened the romantic comedy Almost, Maine last Friday evening to an enthusiastic audience. It certainly felt good to be back in theater seats instead of sitting at my computer.

Almost, Maine, a two-act play by John Cariani, takes place in a series of vignettes, each telling stories of friendship, love, loss, and relationships in general. All the scenes are lit with a dazzling sky full of Northern Lights, under which the participants fall in various ways in and out of its magical spell.

The quaint, fantasy town is named because of its location – almost at the top of the United States, and almost in Canada. They would be a town if they would get organized. But for now, they’re just almost.

The vignettes, each featuring a different couple and situation, explore the absurdity, awkwardness, and challenges inherent in the process of looking for love, finding love, losing love, and reconciling one’s feelings of love. In short, there is a lot packed into each scene, with the compilation forming the whole all wrapped under the spell of the evening.

Smoothly directed by Beth Eslick, the vignettes are replete with quirky personalities who bring forth some fascinating and unusual viewpoints on life and love. Author Cariani has opened a decidedly unique umbrella over a very large subject. It was delightful to experience new explorations and insights into the age-old theme.

Each scene stands alone, although references are occasionally made to the other characters, who are all residents of this small town. The use of minimal scenery changes enhances each scene against the projected background of a beautiful Northern Lights sky, allowing the actors to remain the focal points. The writer’s use of short pieces with a common underlying theme works well to spotlight each couple’s particular situation, giving each full attention and the audience something to ponder.

The very capable cast includes Robert Chambers, James Coblentz, Carl Garcia, Rose Hunter, Eric Pierce, and Heather Lynn Smith. All portray multiple distinct characters.

The actors are all excellent. Pacing is well controlled. In several scenes with quieter moments, volume dropped significantly despite each actor wearing microphones. This was opening night and no doubt each will re-adjust to on-stage projecting as they go. After all, it’s been a long 18 months and we all are readjusting. With joy.

Attendees are required to show proof of vaccination prior to entering the theater and must wear masks while inside. All appropriate precautions are being taken. Be advised – there are no physical programs. Audience members are asked to scan the QR code on the lobby wall to access cast information on their cell phones. Just another minor adjustment as we move forward.

I found the evening to be a breath of fresh air. You should go.

Almost, Maine runs through October 3 with performances on Fridays and Saturdays at 8 p.m., Sundays at 2 p.m. and Thursday, September 23 at 8 p.m. (805) 495-3715 or [email protected], or visit the website at www.conejoplayers.org for reservations.

Streaming Spotlight by Cindy Summers
Joe Bell – Amazon Prime Cinema

In May 2013, an Oregon father named Joe Bell (Mark Wahlberg) started a walk across America to New York to raise awareness about bullying after his son committed suicide. Joe Bell is based on the true story of the events that lead to his son Jadin’s (Reid Miller) suicide and Joe’s later efforts to talk to anyone who would listen to his son’s story, while also reconciling with the loss of his son and his role in the reasons for his son’s actions.

Nearly a year prior to taking his life, Jadin had told his parents that he was being picked on at school by some guys because he was different, specifically because he was gay. His mother Lola (Connie Britton) expressed concern and support, while his father Joe told him to stand up for himself and fight, but Jadin said he couldn’t fight the whole school for his whole life.

Jadin was a sophomore and the only male cheerleader at La Grande High School. Though his dad said he supported him being a cheerleader, he didn’t want Jadin to practice in the front yard of their house and insisted that he practice cheerleading with his friend in the backyard. There was only one time Jadin’s parents went to a football game to support him, but his dad caused them to both leave early, not being able to handle the negative comments from other parents and harassment from other students about his son being a cheerleader.

Jadin was secretly dating a football player from his school, but they broke up because his boyfriend’s parents didn’t know he was gay. Jadin kept his sights on going to New York and starting a new life there. Jadin was receiving threatening texts and was physically bullied at school, but the administration didn’t seek to protect him, only to blame him stating that they lived in a small town and a formal complaint could cause them more trouble. The principal even suggested he transfer schools or seek therapy.

Feeling hopeless, he called his friend Marcy, but she was heading out of town with her mom and didn’t realize how desperate Jadin was, suggesting that he go to their house for the weekend but he said he didn’t want to be alone and couldn’t go home. That night Jadin didn’t go home and hung himself the next morning from the playground equipment at the local elementary school. In real life, Jadin died in the hospital two weeks later after being taken off life support.

Joe shut down and stayed in his room for weeks and when he finally emerged, he said that he was going to walk across America to New York and talk to people about bullying. Though he had no plan and no money, he was convinced this was what Jadin wanted him to do. In six months, he had traveled from La Grande Oregon, through Twin Fall to Idaho, Salt Lake City, Utah and in Steamboat Springs, Colorado was briefly visited by his wife and youngest son Joseph.

Joe’s “Walk for Change” was followed by social media and news organizations along the way that helped to spread his anti-bullying message, but it came to a sudden, unexpected end in Lincoln County, Colorado after 6 months and 1,000 miles traveled.

Rated: R (Teen Partying|Language|Some Disturbing Material|Offensive Slurs)
Runtime: 1h 34m