Filtered

filtered

	by Katie Combs

Starring

Jenna Faller Jeffery Walker III Keira Combs	Gabby Alves Luca Gourdine Taliya Smart	Caydince Carvalho Jake Tomlinson Ronan Yeager
Michelle Chrien
presented by Bay Area Performing Arts & Casting

Director's Note

In 2018, I was struggling to find performance material for my high school and college-age acting students. Much of what was written for them was not relatable to their lives, too simplistic, or irrelevant to their personal experiences. I wanted content that would challenge them to dig deep and connect with an audience in an intimate and authentic way. What originally began as a song cycle developed into a full show concept on a car ride with two of my students as they shared their real life experiences.

I was fascinated by what it was like to live their lives and delve into how social media was impacting them and their generation psychologically.

Rising rates of anxiety and depression among young people began to make sense to me as I looked into their social media interaction at a chemical level.

Filtered premiered at the Tampa Bay Theatre Festival in 2019 and won "Best Musical". Shortly after, it was made into a feature film by Roy Saringo and is set to release November 4th, 2022. The stage show has been reworked and we are so excited to share this updated version with you! We’d love to partner with you on this journey! It is our hope to inspire honest, inter-generational conversation around teens, media, and mental health. Thank you for coming and enjoy the show!

Katie Combs

Song List

Filtered ____________ (Company)

It's Not An Addiction ___(Charter, Jess, Tyler, Logan and Company)

How Many Words_____________(Caroline, Company)

Sweatshirt _________________ (Jackson)

Maybe This Time _____________(Caroline, Jess)

Maybe This time Reprise _______(Dalton)

What You Won’t Know _________(Dalton and Company)

INTERMISSION

From This Instant _____________(Company)

Vlog Song __________________(Masara)

Something _________________(Rebecca)

It’s Your Time _______________(Kaitlyn, Rebecca)

Alone With Me _______________(Company)

You Are Not Alone ____________(Company)

Cast

Gabby Alves

Masara

Caydince Carvalho

Jess

Michelle Chrien

Charter

Keira Combs

Rebecca

Jenna Faller

Caroline

Luca Gourdine

Logan

Taliya Smart

Kaitlyn

Jake Tomlinson

Dalton

Jeffery Walker III

Jackson

Ronan Yeager

Tyler

Creative Team

Katie Combs

Director

Lori Wilbanks

Assistant Director

Maliyah Simone

Producer

Meg McMillin

Sound Technician

Faith Messersmith

Sound Technician

Andreya Redwood

Technical Design

Kent Smith, Joe Cosas

Music Arrangements

Jeffrey 'Jazz' Goodwin

Parody Arrangement

Synopsis of Filtered

Individual teens explore the idea of being accepted and heard in their world. They are alone, yet together, and there is something double-edged about choosing the filter through which the world will see you (“Filtered”).

Charter and Tyler play Fortnite. They patch in Jackson to the game. Charter grills Jackson about his conversations with Masara, reminding Jackson that he hasn’t dated since he and his long time girlfriend, Chloe, broke up.

In Math class Masara notices Caroline’s drawings. She urges her to share her artwork with the world. Caroline explains that she doesn’t have any social media accounts. Masara posts it on her personal Instagram page, immediately getting hundreds of likes.

At home, Charter justifies her social media addiction explaining that she is just distracted due to her ADD. Others join in from their homes giving various excuses for their extensive amount of time spent on media platforms (“It’s Not An Addiction”).

At Rebecca’s house, Kaitlyn explains to Rebecca how much she hates school and finds it pointless considering what she plans to do for a living. Rebecca discusses her family’s conservative values and how that will affect her future. Logan messages Rebecca for the first time. Jess begins her first live tutorial and botches it horribly.

Masara posts a Vlog entry. In her Vlog, she mentions Caroline’s art work and her insistence that Caroline start a following of her own. She also hints that she is talking to someone. Caroline, watching the Vlog, reminds herself of why she is off social media. She mourns her lost childhood and permanent label due to a post that went viral: her mother’s video of Caroline, as a toddler having a tantrum, a now infamous meme (“How Many Words to End a Life”). Other teens join from the privacy of their homes and explore the ways words and pictures can tear down and destroy. Dalton reads a message stating “Why don’t you just kill yourself already” as the song closes.

Tyler and Charter play Fortnight. Charter introduces Tyler to a new app that photo-shops heads to bodies. For humor’s sake, they photo-shop Jackson’s head on a body with a tiny penis. The boys continue to play Fortnite, inviting Jackson into the game. Jackson is busy talking to Masara. Masara and Jackson discuss her schedule and what her everyday life is like. Rebecca and Logan chat more. Rebecca acknowledges how sheltered her world is compared to Logan’s.

In the lunchroom, Kaitlyn recounts hooking up with a guy to Rebecca and Jess. Rebecca notices Logan, but the two don’t talk in person. Jess explains her strategy for the tutorials and her overall game plan.

Caroline admits to Masara that she has given in to her suggestion and started an art Instagram account under a pseudonym. Masara shares with Caroline that she has been talking to Jackson and is considering taking it further.

Charter decides to airdrop the naked picture of Jackson to the lunchroom as a joke; assuming that Jackson will think it’s hilarious. Jackson is furious. Tyler and Charter don’t admit that it was their doing.

Jess shares another live video that ends in disaster. Masara discusses the airdrop photo on her Vlog. Jackson, depressed after watching the Masara’s Vlog, reminisces over his relationship and breakup with his ex-girlfriend, Chloe. He is reminded how he is now just that guy in her old pictures (“Sweatshirt”).

Caroline examines her newfound popularity as she decides to answer her fan’s comments on her new art account. (“Maybe This Time”) Jess searches for angles to improve her live presence and get a following online: (“Maybe This Time Reprise”)

Dalton watches extremist videos and and spends time on the dark web. He decides to start a conversation with Caroline about her art (“Maybe This Time Reprise 2”), but it quickly degenerates into an awkward conversation and Caroline decides to stop responding.

Rebecca and Kaitlyn are hanging out while Logan and Rebecca continue to chat. Rebecca admits to Kaitlyn that Logan has been asking for a naked picture and that even though she did take one, she is hesitant to send it to him out of fear. Rebecca apprehensively decides to send it and is horrified when Logan takes a screenshot. Logan explains himself and she breathes a sigh of relief.

Masara confides in Caroline that her mother is pressuring her to make more videos about Jackson. Dalton approaches Caroline, who snubs him, giving Masara a clue about her tantrum past and enraging Dalton.

Tyler and Charter try to engage Jackson while gaming. Jackson has slipped into depression. Masara Vlogs that she believes Caroline to be the infamous I-Can’t-Handle-it kid. Kaitlyn breaks the news to Rebecca that Logan has shared the photo that she sent him. Rebecca confronts Logan with a message. Jess attempts another live video. She botches this one as well. Caroline publicly denies Masara’s accusation.

Dalton begins to craft his plan to take revenge on society. Act 1 closes as all sing (“What You Don’t Know”)

Jess is on the phone, calling the office in a panic. She explains that she is hiding in closet in the school hallway and has just observed Dalton at his locker opening a bag that has a rifle. She can see him through the small window in the door. Masara, along with some classmates, hiding under desks, Facetimes her mother, who insists on switching to screen-record. Masara pleads with her not to and despairingly hangs up on her. Jess watches from the closet and records with her cell phone through the window of the door. Tyler and Charter talk about what might be happening and text their parents. Rebecca and Kaitlyn huddle together and pray. They all explain how life can change in a moment. (“From This Instant”).

Dalton is apprehended and Jess is thrilled to be holding the video of the dramatic event, which will certainly be the key to her celebrity. In celebration, she drops the phone, accidentally steps on it, breaking it completely. She is devastated.

At home, Masara attempts numerous times to document her feelings about the incident, but is too emotional. She finally makes a short video where she glosses over the incident and explains that she is “fine”. She examines her life story and discovers something disturbing about her unusual relationship with her mother (“You Should Start a Vlog”).

Kaitlyn hangs out with Rebecca as she reads yet another University rejection. Rebecca consoles her by helping her create a new social media image (“It’s Your Time”). Tyler, Charter, and Jackson discuss the news that is unfolding about the attempted shooting, particularly the excessive quantity of ammunition that was found and Dalton’s obsession with Caroline. They reveal that the news has uncovered the truth about Caroline’s identity as the I-Can’t-Handle-it Girl.

At school, Jess talks excitedly to Rebecca and Kaitlyn about the interview she has been asked to give to the news station. They notice that Caroline sits alone and looks very unkempt. Rebecca unexpectedly runs into Logan. They exchange a few words, causing Rebecca to reflect on whether or not they really had a relationship at all (“Something”).

Tyler and Charter watch Jess’s interview and laugh hysterically at her botched attempt to tell the story. They make a parody song using her voice (“In the Closet”).

The teens watch the parody video from their individual homes, asking who will be (“Alone With Me”) as they explore the idea of what it means to be alone, yet connected digitally.

Caroline has slipped into deep depression. Her art page is now filled with vicious comments regarding her treatment of Masara. She is called out as a liar and blamed for the attempted attack on the school. (“How Many Words to End a Life Reprise”). After this reflection, a comment catches her attention. She knows the comment is from Masara, although it is anonymous, asking Caroline to watch her Vlog post.

Jess discovers that the parody video Tyler and Charter have posted has gone viral. She is thrilled as the viewers are flocking to her botched tutorials and hailing her as one of the funniest girls on the internet, assuming she was attempting to be funny (“Maybe This Time Reprise 4”). Kaitlyn opens another letter as she joins in the reprise. The reprise moves to Masara (“Maybe This Time Reprise/Filtered Reprise”) as she re-examines her Vlogging and decides to take the filter off for the first time. She begins a series of posts that are painfully real and vulnerable. Caroline watches, broken emotionally, but for the first time she finds some comfort in Masara’s words.

(“You Are Not Alone”) The teens discover community online reminding them that they are not alone; that they are enough as they are, and there is hope beyond this moment.

Meet the Company

Gabby Alves

Masara

Gabby is a senior and is thrilled to be able to perform this year in "Filtered". Gabby got her start in musicals at the age of 10 in Northside Christian School’s "Music Man" production. For the last 8 years she has been performing with Bay Area Performing Arts and Casting (BAPAC) in roles such as Ariel in "Little Mermaid", Tomika in "School of Rock" and Beatrix Potter in the Original Musical, "Carrots", which was performed at Broadway Bound Theater Festival in New York City. When not singing or performing, Gabby loves to travel (during non pandemic times) and spend time with her friends. She would like to thank God for her family, friends and the blessings He has so freely given her. Finally, she would like to thank the directors and the technical team for everything they do for the cast!

Caydince Carvalho

Jess

Caydince Carvalho has been a proud member of Bay Area Performing Arts & Casting for the past 8 years. Some favorite roles have included Asaka in Once on This Island, Flounder in The Little Mermaid, Jr, Pumbaa in The Lion King, Jr , Oaken in Frozen, Jr, and Jess in Filtered the movie. She's thrilled to reprise the role if Jesus for the stage. She'd like to thank her family, friends, and Katie & Lori for their encouragement, lessons, and love.

Michelle Chrien

Charter

Michelle Chrien is a senior performing arts major in high school. She has been in plays such as Inherit the Wind (Stageworks), The Conspiracy of Silence: The Magdalene Laundries(Powerstories), and musicals such as Hunchback of Notre Dame, Anything Goes, and Young Frankenstein (Eight O’Clock Theatre). She is very thankful to Katie Combs for this incredible opportunity.

Keira Combs

Rebecca

Keira Combs is a senior at Osceola Fundamental High School as well as a senior in the Early College program at SPC. Keira Has been in BAPAC productions for seven years, and has enjoyed the friendship and memories she has made there. When not performing, Keira is wicked cool, like super cool. You can usually find her painting, sewing, and choreographing BAPAC productions. Keira would like to thank her friends and family for the support they have given her.

Jenna Faller

Caroline

Jenna is very excited to be performing again in Filtered! She has been in many productions through the years. She now is a student majoring in film and enjoying Orlando.

Luca Gourdine

Logan

Luca is a Junior and is excited to be a part of this production. He recently starred in Anastasia as Ivan and in Legally Blonde as Warner. He is involved with the fine arts department at his school and sings on the worship team. He is passionate about music, playing instruments, surfing, boxing and playing hockey. Luca thanks Katie, Lori, & Maliyah for this great opportunity. He also thanks his parents, friends and family for their never-ending love and support, and God for blessing him with the talent and time to pursue his passion for theater.

Taliya Smart

Kaitlyn

Taliya Smart is 16 years old and in the 11th grade. She has participated in many productions but her favorite are “Elf, Jr” as the Manager and “Once on this Island, Jr” where she played Ti Moune. Taliya is also a part of the acapella group, Crescendo. She is involved in the Chorus at SPHS, where she was chosen to participate in the acapella group “Pitchforks” as well as selected to participate in the FL ACDA state choir and the Pinellas All-County Chorus. She is involved in theater at school along with various other clubs. Taliya would like to thank her parents, siblings and Katie, & and Maliyah for all of their support.

Jake Tomlinson

Dalton

This is Jake’s first year in BAPAC and he is loving it. Jake is also starting his senior year of high school at East Lake High School. Jake has previous experience in theatre having been Aldolpho in the Drowsy Chaperone, Panch in The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee and many others. He would like to thank his Mom, Dad, Katie, Lori, & Maliyah for this opportunity!

Jeffery Walker III

Jackson

Jeffery is a sophomore in high school who has been living and breathing the craft of Musical Theatre since the 3rd grade. He has been cast as Shane Grey in Camp Rock, Twice as Harold Hill in The Music Man Jr., Twice as Rooster in Annie Jr., Kristoff and Pabbie in Frozen Jr, Agwe in Once on This Island, Buddy in Elf Jr., Jesus in Godspell, Jr., and many more! When Jeffery is not on stage for Musical Theater, he performs with an Acapella group, competes in national theater competitions, and is very involved in his high school music and theatre department.

Ronan Yeager

Tyler

This will be Ronan's 5th production in association with BAPAC. Other favorite roles include Hugo Peabody in Bye Bye Birdie, Narrator in Once on this Island, Luke in Disney's Camp Rock, Troy in High School Musical, Aladdin in Aladdin, Prince Charming in Disney’s Sleeping Beauty, Scarecrow in the Wizard of Oz and Simba in the Lion King. When Ronan is not performing, he enjoys traveling with his parents, hanging out with friends and running cross country and track for his high school. He thanks Katie Combs, Lori Wilbanks, and Maliyah Simone for this opportunity; and his parents for always supporting him and believing in him.