The Unusual Suspects Theatre Company Web Site

This year The Unusual Suspects (US) celebrates its birthday by spotlighting 15 voices from the last 15 years. These voices represent the community of youth, artists, staff, volunteers, funders and partners that have been such an important of our history. Keep your eyes open for the next 15 Years, 15 Voices and make the next 15 years as transformative as the last by helping us reach our goal of raising $150,000 the next 15 months!

A Passionate and Dedicated Teaching Artist
Maria Pasquarelli

I first heard of The Unusual Suspects after I graduated from college and was working part-time at Cornerstone Theater Company. The chair of the board of directors at Cornerstone, Vanessa Livingston, knew that I was looking for additional part-time work. Luckily for me, Vanessa had already been contacted by the founder of The Unusual Suspects about being a part of US - I got in touch with Laura Leigh and totally lucked out, because she was looking for a part-time assistant!

Since then, I have worked with The Unusual Suspects in just about every capacity possible. I started out literally working in Laura Leigh's closet as her very first assistant. A few years later, I worked as a prop master at the Star View site. From there, I continued down the path of Teaching Artist. Since then, I have worked at Camp G, Star View, and Vista. Now I am primarily a Teaching Artist, but I have also continued to help out in the office from time to time.

I am a HUGE advocate for arts education for various reasons. Research has proven that involvement in the arts improves test scores, teaches empathy, increases problem solving and critical thinking skills, as well as fosters a sense of pride in participants. We work with youth populations in Los Angeles that are often written off by the rest of society. By giving these youth a voice, teaching them skills and increasing their sense of worth, we are making strides in reducing crime (especially gang-related crime), increasing acceptance of people and cultures among our youth, and, in some cases, providing an emotional or physical outlet for youth who might otherwise turn to destructive forces.

I am a firm believer that The Unusual Suspects' programming helps prevent youth gang involvement. Sure, it's not a foolproof system. Sure, not every participant goes off to change his or her life drastically. However, I believe that if every participant had a safe environment to go back to after finishing a US program, or if every participant could be guaranteed a job or an education later in life, there would be a 100% success rate. US's program encourages youth steer away from a typical gang mentality by teaching them to see how their actions affect others, to rely on themselves as much as they rely on others, and to make positive and creative choices.

This past July, I had the privilege of going with the US staff to an event sponsored by New Roads/New Visions, one of our partners at Camp David Gonzalez. The event focused on the reentry process and how difficult it is for many of our youth who were incarcerated to get back out into the world and thrive and make positive choices for themselves. There I ran into two US alumni that I had worked with at 'Camp G'. It was the first time I had seen either of them outside of camp walls and I almost exploded with joy. I could see the freedom and future in their eyes. Both young men had good news - they were both off to college that fall and doing well "on the outs." They were all smiles when they shared their successes. It was a magical moment for me.

Quite simply, through working with The Unusual Suspects, I have become a better person. I have become calmer, more accepting, more understanding of others and even more of an advocate for the arts in education. It has cemented in my mind, my belief that everyone is capable of change and everyone is capable of accomplishing beautiful things in his or her life.

Maria Pasquarelli is a graduate of the USC School of Theatre and a native of Pittsburgh, PA, where she began acting and dancing at a young age. Los Angeles theater credits include Ampelisca in The Rope, Jessica in The Merchant of Venice, Dixon in Soldiers Don't Cry, and Foible in The Way of the World. She has also performed in Germany with ICAP in Night Breath at the PlayOff 2006 international theatre festival.

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