‘Charlie Brown’ Play Features Two Cast Members from CV
Photo by Dayna Speed
Castro Valley Cast Members Clarisse Saam and Maggie Francisco
You’re a Good Man, CHARLIE BROWN opens Friday, February 14, on Valentine’s Day at 7:30pm at the Castro Valley Center for the Arts. This Castro Valley Arts Foundation/TMC ARTS production based on the Charles Schultz Peanuts cartoon strip runs only one weekend. The cast of 14 comes from all over the Bay Area, but two of the cast members Clarisse Saam (CVHS 2003) and Maggie Francisco O.D. (CVHS 2008) call Castro Valley home.
Clarisse Saam (nee Manning) has a special role in You’re a Good Man, CHARLIE BROWN as the voice of Lucy. She is excited about this new experience of working alongside her fellow actor who will be signing. Clarisse took American Sign Language at Castro Valley High School but does not consider herself bilingual. She has enjoyed relearning some of the intricacies of the language and observing how her counterpart brings the script to life in a new way. For example, in “The Book Report” song, new ASL signs had to be created for the long list of vegetables, “okra, parsnips, asparagus, chives, etc.,” and the idiom “shooting fish in a barrel” gets a little something extra when delivered in sign language. How to deliver these lines has been part of the fun.
Today Clarisse lives in Concord with her husband and young son. She is self-employed as a Leadership Coach, empowering leaders and entrepreneurs to overcome challenges like “burnout” and “procrastination.” She views her job as “one who nourishes seeds of growth!” Most of her work is done virtually with clients across the country.
Clarisse is all about Singing. In high school she sang with the choir, the ASL Talent show and a musical. Once in the work world, she realized something was missing in her life. She returned to vocal lessons and started auditioning. “I realize now I can never stop singing. It is my road map to resiliency!”
Maggie Francisco is part of the colorful CHARLIE BROWN ensemble and plays Lucy’s little brother Linus on Saturday, February 15 at 7:30pm. Maggie embraced the opportunity to play something so different from her usual ingénue roles “….definitely pushing me outside my comfort zone.” She laughs, “Linus makes sucking your thumb and holding a security blanket OK.”
Maggie lives in Castro Valley with her husband and three-year-old daughter. After completing Optometry School, Dr. Maggie Francisco returned to Castro Valley to practice at Castro Valley Optometry. She is passionate about educating parents about the need for children to have routine vision exams. She explains, “Children don’t know what normal vision is, so parents can’t wait for complaints.”
Like Clarisse, Maggie was missing the joy of singing. She joined the CVHS Alumnae Chorale and sang in “Hunchback” last summer. “I reconnected with my love of being part of a group that creates something beautiful.” Maggie likens being on stage to parenthood: “The days may seem long and tiring, but in the end, I wouldn’t trade it for anything!”
Come “cheer on” Clarisse and Maggie in You’re a Good Man CHARLIE BROWN February 14, 15 at 7:30 15, 16 at 2:00pm. 19501 Redwood Road. Free Parking. Handicap accessible. For tickets: cvartsfoundation.org or Call 510-889-8961.