Sonoma Arts Live musical ‘13' on stage through March 17

Sonoma Arts Live will stage the musical “13” starring a dozen area teens now through March 17.

Sonoma Arts Live’s production is a part of its Teens ’N Training program. The show is directed by the company’s education director Libby Oberlin with music directed by Sandy Riccardi.

“‘13’ is a musical about discovering that ‘cool’ can be found in unexpected places,” said Sonoma Arts Live executive artistic director Jaime Love in a press release announcing the show. “The musical explores, with humor and humanity, the sometimes painful labels that can last a lifetime.”

Because a bat mitzvah is a central part of “13,” this year’s Sonoma Arts Live Teens ’N Training production invited Rabbi Steve Finley from Congregation Shir Shalom to attend a rehearsal, where he spoke with the kids about the bat mitzvah and answered questions about the ceremony. On Monday night, Finley came back with Hannah Volat who is studying with for her bat mitzvah at Shir Shalom on Saturday. Volat chatted with the cast including Maggie Cooke who plays bat mitzvah student Ava Goldman.

The play is set in 1993 and a group of young local actors fills out the cast.

The cast consists of the Outcasts, played by Maggie Cooke, Sophia Strand and Augustus Rinehart. The Jocks and Grunge kids are played by Cole Gorman, Aiden Blackwood, Jade O’Keefe, Giacomo Patri and Zack Yankee. The Cheer Squad is played by Nika Gorman, Ella Martin, Evy Hall, Gianna Rossetti, Carmen Jagard, Addy Fitzpatrick and Reina Gibbs.

Tickets and information at sonomaartslive.org.