Director returns to South County with three new productions
Morgan Hill – John Bisceglie just can’t stay out of South County. The theater guru lives in San Mateo, works in Foster City and still manages to find the time to drive south to Gilroy and Morgan Hill to put on his out-of-the-ordinary theater productions several times a year.
Known for his elaborate productions at Christopher and Hoey Ranches, he works full time providing business development for an online marketing company and sees his theater productions as his chance to “get my hands in the papier-mâché.”
And Bisceglie has had plenty of chances for that since he started writing, directing and choreographing shows in 1985. He worked as an artistic director for the San Jose Parks and Recreation’s Young People’s Theater for nine years and has served Gilroy’s Community Service department for the past 12 years. With the city-sponsored shows and his own independent John Bisceglie Presents productions, he has worked in more than 250 shows throughout the Bay Area.
Bisceglie is presenting three more out of the ordinary shows this summer including “Disco Island Revisited!,” “Trio” and “Totally Rockin’ Temple of Boom.”
Although he has never lived in Gilroy or Morgan Hill, at least 26 of his productions have been performed in the area.
“I continue coming to Gilroy because we have a really nice thing going,” Bisceglie said of his reason for taking the sometimes two-hour commute from San Mateo for rehearsals and shows. “It’s been a treat to work with families and a lot of them are so involved.”
The McBrearty family is one Gilroy family that has worked with Bisceglie for more than 10 years. Judy McBrearty started helping out with the shows when her daughter, Meghan, first took to the stage.
“I got involved right from the beginning, with ushering and back stage help,” said McBrearty who now works as a production coordinator for Bisceglie. “The reason we like him is because he is young and always energetic.”
McBrearty’s children, Ryan and Meghan, have been in more than 35 of Bisceglie’s shows.
“He brings out the best in the kids,” McBrearty said. “He just feeds off them.”
Bisceglie dances across the stage and bursts out into song at rehearsals. With his young looks he wouldn’t be distinguishable from his cast if he weren’t dressed in a button-down striped shirt and blue jeans rather then the white disco jump suits the kids are wearing for an upcoming show.
But all goofing and joking aside, Bisceglie is all business when he takes to the sound booth to watch his performers run through their routines.
“Smile,” he reminds the kids as they dance across the stage with feathered wigs and afros to ’70s disco tunes.
Bisceglie put on his first Gilroy production in 1992 and some of his youngest performers then are still coming back to work with him as young adults.
“John’s very talented and I don’t know how he does it,” said Sadie Brown who is starring in two of Bisceglie’s shows this summer. “He’s planning to pull off three shows, but I know he will do it.”
Brown, 18, has been working with Bisceglie in a variety of shows since she was 6. She moved to Livermore a year and a half ago, but continues to drive to Morgan Hill and Gilroy to work with friends she has made throughout the years, but mostly so she can keep working with Bisceglie.
“He picks all the right songs for me and enables me to learn them,” Brown said.
McBrearty’s daughter, Meghan, 21, is another of Bisceglie’s longtime fans and performers. She first starred in a Bisceglie production in 1994.
“A lot of times I keep coming back because he puts on an amazing show,” she said. “I’m always so happy to perform in his stuff. I am in awe of whatever he does. He just has this vision.”
The University of California, Santa Barbara student finds time to visit her parents during the school year and help out with whatever production Bisceglie has going on.
She is taking the summer to perform in two of his shows.
“He’s just so enthralled with detail. Everything is perfect. Everything is glittering and everything is over the top.” Meghan said. “His work really shows in the final product. He works for three months and then you get this spectacular show.”
One thing that keeps many of the singers, dancers and actors coming back to work with Bisceglie is his one of a kind creations.
“You’ll never find one of his shows somewhere else,” said Alan Hoshida, a 16-year-old Gilroy High School student who has performed in Bisceglie shows since he was 6 years old. “They are all unique. I like how he writes and the opportunities he gives to every kid.”
“Everything is different,” Brown said, agreeing with Hoshida. “Instead of Annie and fairy-tale plays.”
And as long as the performers and audiences keep coming back, so will Bisceglie.
“I get to do neat and unique things,” Bisceglie said. “It’s a good relationship. It’s a labor of love.”
