Letter of Recommendations

January 1, 2018 

To Whom It May Concern: 

It is my great pleasure to say that I have had the outstanding young woman Angela Friedman as my student and as a playwright, assistant director, stage-manager, and prop-creator in the past four of my main stage productions at the Hollywood High School Performing Arts Magnet. Angela Friedman is one of the most amazingly smart, talented, creative, responsible, dependable, and resourceful young women I have ever had the pleasure of knowing. 

I first met Angela Friedman when she was a precocious ninth grader. However, her reputation had already preceded her because all  her ninth grade friends had excitedly announced her by  saying - “Wait until you meet Angela!  She’s amazing!” The other ninth graders breathlessly told me that in middle school Angela was the one who choreographed the dances and that Angela was the one who directed a show in the eighth grade!  And then I met the freshman Angela and everything her friends and peers had said was true! In 2014, I was directing Mary Zimmerman’s Arabian Nights, which is a very demanding and difficult play, filled with many different scenes, and music and dance.  Angela the freshman showed up and immediately became an indispensable member of the production. She got a copy of the script and began taking production notes, such as blocking, and sound and light cues; and sometimes she would point out some unforeseen issue which might crop up in the future or a forgotten bit of information, or she would make excellent suggestions when we would occasionally hit a technical or creative snag. Angela wasn’t doing this because she had to do it for a class; she was there because she wanted to be there. And she was there every day at rehearsals, on time, ready to work - of her own volition. Another detail that is just as remarkable is that she tore through books - large, difficult books - while she was also writing down blocking, making suggestions, and pointing out issues. Angela read about two 600-page books a week while copying down production notes, making suggestions, and remembering things - and maintaining an “A” average in her classes.

However, that’s not the only thing she did that was remarkable. Angela helped choreograph some of the belly dancing for Arabian Nights, and on top of that, Angela demonstrated an unbelievably useful talent for making props! There were moments during the 2015 production of Argonautika, which was another demanding show based on Jason and the Argonauts, when I needed a rock throne and despaired of ever finding the time or expertise in making a rock throne - until Angela Friedman dove into the paints and papier-mâché and created a rock throne!  And she didn’t stop there! We need a huge ancient book with mysterious lettering on its cover?  Not a problem - Angela can build it. A harness to capture the fearsome minotaur? Angela can do that, too! Sea surf cascading across the stage and then receding? No problem - Angela’s here! A small sea craft with a mast and flag that coasts across the stage for the 2016 production of Peter and the Starcatcher? Angela can build it!  And did! 

But Angela truly demonstrated the depth and breadth of her awesomeness with our 2018 production of The Servant of Two Masters, an 18th century commedia dell’arte play.  We needed a block buster ending for the first act and Angela delivered one! She not only wrote a brilliant seven-page scene that wowed the audience, she also thought up and created: a pushcart with an “exploding suffle” complete with “flames” and explosion(!); another pushcart with a dozen various food items - lasagna, cakes, breads, pasta dishes of all sorts, shapes, and sizes - which she made all by herself out of styrofoam - and looked edible to boot(!); spaghetti out of yarn which wound around an actor; and painted rubber balls to look like meatballs!  Whenever I would come up with a need for some sort of prop, Angela would say “Give me a minute!” Then she would disappear and emerge a while later, covered in paint and with the prop I needed, brilliantly and beautifully executed! She also choreographed the scene she had written and put the actors through their paces! And all the while, she maintained high grades, and also participated in dance productions, the Thespian Club, and leadership. Angela Friedman is extraordinary. 

I also have the pleasure of having Angela as my student in A.P. English Literature where I can attest to her intellectual abilities by her insightful and nuanced essays in literary analysis.

I have seen Angela demonstrate enormous maturity, equanimity, and wisdom in some difficult times. She ran for Thespian Club president, and when there were some questionable activity on the part of other students, Angela behaved with grace and dignity.  

Angela does not come from money. Her parents are teachers and have instilled in her a great respect for hard work, integrity, and knowledge. I cannot think of a more deserving student to go to university. Angela Friedman is wonderful, brilliant, creative, resourceful, hardworking, dependable, responsible, wise, mature, loving, and giving.  She is one of those students a teacher who has taught thousands of students will definitely remember and remember with great, great fondness. 

If you have any questions, please feel free to email me at jbridges@lausd.net or

 jkatbridge@004 @gmail.com. 

Sincerely, 

Judith Bridges 

Teacher/Director 

Hollywood High School Performing Arts Magnet