Written by: Jehiely Balabarca
Anaya Parker wrote her first draft of Breaking Tides in eighth grade. It was a quiet, handwritten, hopeful playscript born in the margins of notebooks between school classes.
Nearly seven years later, that story is being brought to life by a full student cast at Southern Adventist University.
Breaking Tides will be shown April 11, 5 p.m., in Southern’s Lynn Wood Chapel. Admission is free, but the cast recommends attendees get tickets to be guaranteed a seat. All those who can’t attend in person are invited to stream the play on the Breaking Tides Facebook page. The cast invites all students, faculty, and friends to attend the show.
According to Parker, the play is set in 1940s Oahu, following Halia, and her family in the aftermath of the Pearl Harbor attack. It also features Halia’s best friend, Aiko, as she suffers the loss of her brother and struggles in a Japanese internment camp. Halia then decides to write a story about a wounded soldier for a newspaper competition, meeting a young Will, which opens her eyes to the racism present during the 1940s. It’s about memory, identity and how people find their way back to each other, imperfectly and painfully, but with grace.
In the play, Halia’s family struggles to cope with the changing times as her sister Diana begins working to help with the war effort.
“I always hoped to produce it,” said Parker. “And now it’s finally happening. It’s honestly the coolest thing I’ve ever done.”
Currently a junior religious studies major, Parker will be directing the play and playing the sister of the story’s main character.
The journey to production hasn’t been smooth. The play was initially scheduled to open last December in honor of the Pearl Harbor anniversary. But Parker had to postpone and rebuild when multiple cast members dropped out.
“It was discouraging at first,” she admitted. “But it ended up being a blessing. The people who stepped into the roles this semester have brought so much depth and heart. I’m honestly grateful we waited.”
The new cast includes students from various majors and backgrounds, some with acting experience and others stepping onstage for the first time. Rehearsals began in late January, with two months of learning lines, late-night reblocking and costume decisions ensuing.
Emma Boughman, a senior character animation major, plays the lead role of Halia. She has wanted to act since childhood but never thought she’d get the chance, especially in Adventist schools where theater hasn’t always been prioritized.
“When I was a kid, I wanted to be an actress,” Boughman said. “But with Sabbath and school policies, it always felt out of reach. So this means the world.”
Practices have reminded her of the behind-the-scenes camaraderie you see in movie montages, inside jokes, costume malfunctions and the quiet solidarity of castmates learning to breathe in sync.
“The script has evolved so much since our first read-through,” Boughman said. “Back then, the romance felt too rushed. Now it’s rooted, honest. We’ve made it our own.”
Boughman reflected on her favorite moments.
“Honestly, the ridiculous kiss scenes,” she said. “They’ve been hilarious to rehearse. But also that first table read… the rawness of it. We were just starting, but you could already feel the bones of something real.”
Skyler Perla, a sophomore theology major and first-time actor, will be playing Jack, the main character’s brother. He described the experience as unexpectedly transformative.
“I didn’t think much of it at first,” Perla said. “But after weeks of practicing, joking backstage, and just being together… I realized I’m going to miss these people.”
Perla described the process as “a beautiful ball of chaos” – flying costumes, forgotten lines and new friendships.
Freshman graphic design major Jeanyvah Desarmes will be playing the role of Nell White Larson, a woman working for the Women’s Air Raid Defense (WARD) and has called the cast her “first acting family.”
“This is the first time I’m going to be seen,” Desarmes said. “I’ve directed shows with my sisters before but never performed like this. The community I’ve found here is something I’ll never forget.”
Ava Caroline Schmidt, a freshman communications major, will play the role of Mrs. Robinson, the main character’s mother, and co-direct alongside Parker.
“We’re both in theater, so Anaya and I just get each other,” Schmidt said. “Sometimes we don’t even have to say anything; we already know what the other is thinking. There’s this rhythm between us that’s made the whole process really meaningful.”
She added that one of her favorite moments is a scene where her on-stage husband breaks into laughter.
“His laugh is so ridiculous and dad-like,” she said, chuckling. “I crack up every single time.”
Balancing rehearsals with classes, responsibilities and spiritual life has been a challenge for many in the cast, including Schmidt.
“I wanted to be on top of things,” Schmidt said. “Not just because I’m acting, but because I’m co-directing. I wanted to lead by example. It’s been hard, but the good kind of hard.”
Maddy Brower, a freshman communications major, plays two more minor roles: a waitress in Act 1 and Fluff Ford, a historical figure among the real-life WARD Women of Oahu. Brower is also in charge of the costumes and hair department, which she described as some of her passions.
“I love watching a story come together,” she said, “and seeing how something historically grounded can also be fun, emotional and creative. Anaya has done such a great job leading all of us. She makes space for everyone’s voice. That’s rare.”
Still, the challenge of coordinating such a large team hasn’t been lost on Parker.
“Getting everyone in the same place, at the same time, with lines ready and energy up… it’s a lot,” she said. “But it’s worth it for the community we’ve built.”
Parker said the process has shown her just how collaborative theater really is.
“You write something in a room alone, and then suddenly it’s not yours anymore,” she explained. “It belongs to the people who perform it, who feel it, who make it real.”
For more information, follow the actors on their Instagram page, @breakingtidesplay.
