Jon Bruschke (he/him/his)
Writer-Producedr
I am professor at CSU Fullerton of 3 decades and their former debate coach. We were a band of misfit toys consistently taking on teams from USC, Harvard, Berkeley, and Texas and winning as often as we lost. At our peak we were on the front cover of the LA Times. The key was digging into the research and putting our own lives into the arguments. Our opponents would produce brilliant and well-researched strategies; we would pursue ideas that really mattered to us and made a difference in our lives. Pedagogy of the Oppressed by Paulo Freire was a book that resonated with generations of students.
My passion was playing in a garage-rock band on the local Orange County circuit, where i met co-collaborator and brilliant guitarist Andrew Howat.
During the pandemic I started writing a musical, and when I asked “what’s the important thing about my life that is worth devoting a narrative to?” the obvious answer was my time with the debate team. What we had done — bringing massively different people together and creating a powerfully affirming space where we were mutually committed to making the world a better place — was an idea that could carry a show.
This production is the culmination of a lifetime of experience, combining everything I’ve learned as a very accomplished academic with everything I’ve loved doing with music. It allows me to follow my passion for teaching, and my goal is to direct this production with a cast exactly the way I coached my debate team. It’s worked in 3 different theaters so far, and I’m all in for pushing this as far as it can go.
