More than 800 middle school and high school students from throughout the Coachella Valley were bused in to see this year’s Youth Outreach Production, Touchy Subjects by Lois Anne DeLong. The play addressed the important subject of sexual harassment in the school system, one of the most common forms of bullying in schools today.
Our play used a creative approach by sharing different situations that children encounter, many of which are not thought of by them as sexual harassment, which is very important for the students to see and understand. The play was performed by their peers, which also made it much easier for them to relate. Following each performance was a Q&A session where the audience could ask questions and the cast shared stories of their own experiences of facing bullying and in particular sexual harassment in their lives.
We would like to thank the cast of Touchy Subjects: Angell Avitia (La Quinta High), Kaitlyn Garrison (Palm Desert High), Emilio Gutierrez (Desert Hot Springs High), Amanda Huffstutlar (Rancho Mirage High), Hunter La Salle (Rancho Mirage High), Summer Lindberg (Desert Hot Springs High), Katie Nolan (Rancho Mirage High), Antony Peoples (Rancho Mirage High), Yessenia Rangel (Desert Hot Springs High), Priscilla Richards (College of the Desert), Devan Sambrano (Desert Hot Springs High) and Emily Sanchez (Desert Hot Springs High.) Pictured with the cast in the photo above are Youth Outreach Production Sponsors, Patty & Arthur Newman / Newman’s Own Foundation.
