Santa Rosa High School play changes venue after controversy arises

SANTA ROSA, Calif. - A play that envisions the future of the beloved "Peanuts" characters has caused some controversy in a North Bay community after district officials canceled the show because of its content.

The decision has since been reversed, but not before some cried foul, claiming censorship of the arts, as first reported by the Press Democrat.

The play, "Dog Sees God: Confessions of a Teenage Blockhead" by Bert V. Royal, showcases the "Peanuts" gang in the future as teenagers facing challenges and featuring themes such as sexuality, homophobia, suicide, and eating disorders, with the use of profanity.

It's not a sanctioned sequel to the "Peanuts" comics, which was created by cartoonist Charles M. Schultz, who spent the later years of his life in Santa Rosa.

District officials canceled the play after one performance Friday night, but as of Saturday morning, they changed their decision following "careful consideration and consultation with the [school] board," but not without its caveats.

The show will go on, but attendees must be 16 years or older or have a parent attending the show with them, district officials said.

The change comes after some parents and community members "not directly connected to SRHS" were "not clearly informed" of the play's content before the first performance, said the Santa Rosa City School District's Superintendent Dr. Daisy Morales and Board President Omar Medina in a joint statement shared with parents.

District officials said they did not cancel the show out of censorship but out of caution and concern due to the topics the play touches on.

"While these topics can provoke meaningful and important conversations and provide a voice for our students, the play also contains language and scenes that require thoughtful unpacking, ideally guided by parents or guardians," district officials said.

"As a district, it is our responsibility to ensure protections for all students, and we should have established clear parameters and shared them widely before the first showing. We fully support our ArtQuest programs and remain committed to providing opportunities for students to share their experiences and talents while ensuring the protection of our younger students."

Dr. Morales echoed this statement, saying separately that it wasn't an attempt to censor programs or stifle students' creativity, but in consideration of the appropriateness of the content for all students.

"We believe the show can go on provided parents, staff, and students are warned about the mature content in the production and there is signage at the door showcasing that," Dr. Morales said.

Despite changing course, Saturday's performance of "Dog Sees God" was moved to the Mercury Theater in the neighboring town of Petaluma.

At the new venue, the student performers did not have to make any changes to the content of the play or include the age restrictions like the district requires.

"We are happy to announce that we will be opening our doors to the students who have spent the past four months rehearsing the show," Mercury Theater said in a statement.

After the show was canceled by the district, ArtQuest theatre instructor Jereme Anglin reached out to Mercury Theater's Vice President Elly Lichenstein about possibly moving the show to their venue, the theater told KTVU. Their board met and unanimously invited ArtQuest to perform there. 

The theatre is hosting ArtQuest's production at no cost to them and said all proceeds from ticket sales will go back into the magnet program.

"It is a privilege to have this opportunity to give the performers and crew a chance to present their hard work on our stage," the theatre said.

It's unclear if the show will continue all future performances at the theatre. When they first changed the venue, there was no "hope of finishing its run at Santa Rosa High School," according to the Mercury Theater.

Dean Jahnsen, a senior at SRHS and ArtQuest's president, told the Press Democrat the initial cancelation was unfair.

"We’ve never had a problem with profanity — censoring the arts is unfair," Jahnsen said. "[ArtQuest] is all about self-expression. It kills us to hear this."

"We’ve never had to have anybody proofread our shows," Jereme Anglin said to the Press Democrat. "I’m worried that the district is moving into a position of censorship and not letting students express themselves, especially in the arts."

The newspaper described Anglin as a theatre teacher with ArtQuest.

According to the Press Democrat, the Santa Rosa City School District received complaints about the play's contents, though would not say who complained.

The show is a production of Santa Rosa High School's ArtQuest. According to its website, ArtQuest defines itself as an artistic learning community and is a magnet program at SRHS.

ArtQuest said on their website that times and locations for the future "Dog Sees God" shows are pending following the reversal.

"Thank you to the students, teachers, and community that stood up for the arts. And thank you to the Mercury Theater for graciously offering to host these artists," ArtQuest said.

KTVU reached out to ArtQuest for additional comment and is waiting to hear back.

This story was reported out of Oakland, Calif.