From the NY theatre to USD

Pair moves from New York to San Diego with big plans for the local theatre scene

Catherine Silvey / Feature Editor / The USD Vista
Sabrina Alterman / Asst. Feature Editor / The USD Vista

In 2019, the University of San Diego hired Jesse Perez and Sofia Gomez into the school’s theatre program. However, not only had these two new instructors known each other from the acting community in New York City, but they also happen to be partners, excited to take on the San Diego theatre scene together.

Perez, the new director of the Shiley Graduate Theatre Program, attended Juilliard College for acting, pursuing his lifelong dream of being a storyteller. After graduating, Perez found work in New York City, performing in off-Broadway productions of plays like “Party People” and “A Doll’s House.”

While working as an actor at the Yale Repertory Theatre, Perez met Gomez, an actress in her third year of the masters program at Yale. Gomez, a Texas native, moved to the East Coast to fine tune her craft and expose herself to more techniques. The two actors continued crossing paths and first worked together in the play “Argonautika” at Berkeley Repertory Theatre in Northern California. Since then, they have been in multiple productions together, including the Old Globe’s most recent production of “Romeo and Juliet.”

After living in New York together, the couple moved to San Diego in January of 2019 when Perez was offered the job as director of the graduate theatre program at USD. As the new Shiley Program director, Perez is motivated and optimistic about modernizing the current curriculum.

“I want to change the lense through which we look at the word ‘classical,’” Perez said. “We have always been taught a certain way. All of the classical work is European. What does American classical look like? Should we ignore where people come from in the Americas to teach the same classics? Shouldn’t we be inspiring plays from people of color? I just want to take a couple of steps in another direction.”

Perez expressed a desire to promote diversity within the Shiley Program and broaden the horizons of theatrical storytelling by involving as many different voices and perspectives as possible.

“I want to bring more voices of color,” Perez said. “As a Mexican-American, I feel that universities are missing that part about giving students their own voice. We need to be reading plays written by voices of color.”

Perez’s desire in making the Shiley Program more inclusive is beginning to shine through in the most-recent graduating class, which consists of more women than men. In previous years, male students always outnumbered female students in the program.

While Perez continues innovating the graduate theatre program, Gomez became an acting instructor for undergraduate students at USD, imparting her knowledge of the craft and experience to her students. She hopes to inspire students to tap into their inner confidence and use it in all aspects of their life.

“From my acting class, I want students to leave knowing how to deal with their stress levels,” Gomez said. “I want them to stop hiding themselves, and embrace who they are in their full capacity. My students are the future, and I want my students to find their passion and use their brilliance and take charge. I want to see my students have ownership of where they came from and where they are going.”

Gomez also noted universal benefits of engaging with theatre, and encouraged students of all backgrounds to take theatre classes at USD. 

“I want to make sure that more students take the opportunity to join the theatre department,” Gomez said. “Theatre helps you learn about yourself, regardless of your major. The bigger presence you can have, the more impact you can make in any career.”

Gomez also offered words of advice to those who are interested in pursuing acting as a profession.

“If every day you can only think of acting or theatre, then do it,” Gomez said. “If you wake up thinking about it, do it. It has to be something you love and want to do for your life. It requires a lot of investment of self and energy. You have to be an athlete of language and humanity.”

Perez gave advice of his own to aspiring actors, emphasizing the emotional toll performance art can take on actors.

“Make sure it is something you are very in love with because it is very difficult,” Perez said. “Relaying the human condition to an audience is very hard and yet very simple at the same time. To be relaxed in front of hundreds of people, takes a lot of work. You will need to dig deep into the darkest crevices of your soul and be okay with what you discover.”

The USD Shiley Graduate Theatre Program production of Shakespeare’s “Twelfth Night,” directed by Perez, will play at the Old Globe Theatre from Nov. 2-10.