New Santa Barbara Theatre Company Making Debut

HappySad Theater Company, a newly formed Santa Barbara-based theatre collective, is getting ready for its debut production of The Effect by Lucy Prebble that will be held Friday Jan. 16 and Saturday Jan. 17 at Center Stage Theater upstairs in Paseo Nuevo.

Founded by actor and director Robert Rodarte, who said the idea of the HappySad Theater Company began years ago while growing up in Santa Barbara. Rodarte left to train and work as an actor in New York, returning to create the type of theater group that was missing locally. “I was like, one day I’ll come back and make the stuff I want to make,” Rodarte said. “And now I’m doing the thing I always talked about doing.”

The idea for the company’s name comes from the traditional comedy and tragedy masks, which Rodarte said have long interested him. He said he found the name simple while still reflecting emotion. 

HappySads’ debut production of The Effect is about a clinical trial for a new antidepressant. The play then continues to follow two participants, who develop romantic feelings for each other when taking part in the study. The play questions love, mental health, and takes you along while trying to figure out if emotions influenced by medication can be authentic. 

Actor Gioia Marchese plays Dr. Lorna James, one of the doctors overseeing the trial. “The show opens up the question,” Marchese said, “… if you have an experience based on a reaction from a medication, is that experience still real, still valid?” Rodarte said The Effect was chosen as HappySad Theater’s first production, and it reflects the company’s artistic values. 

Though rehearsals have required flexibility due to the cast’s work and family commitments, Marchese said, “We’re all doing it around our busy work and parenting schedules, but also we all come prepared and committed to work.” Marchese also reflected on working with Rodarte, whom she had known early in his career. “To have seen him grow and then be my director is pretty gratifying,” she said, also adding how she has heavily enjoyed watching him apply years of training to his work. 

Looking ahead, Rodarte said HappySad Theater already has future productions planned, and this debut is only a starting point.