Now, as theater manager for the newly finished Performing Arts and Lecture Center, Stapleton is finally able to see the talents of the students displayed in a venue as impressive as the performances taking place inside.

"Our drama and music teachers have built up their departments with very little in terms of places to perform. Now they have a facility where they can show off their students' talent," Stapleton says.

The PAL center officially opened on Nov. 25, with an opening night ceremony that featured a variety of performances. The night kicked off with a ribbon cutting ceremony, followed by a performance from the choir, speeches, a number from the fall musical and several pieces by the violin orchestra. Stapleton described the evening as "a taste of what's to come."

Stapleton hopes the new center will increase students' interest in music and the performing arts, as well as draw a larger audience to school events. He says he has already received positive feedback from audience members at the Dec. 1-3 shows of the musical Working, and the Dec. 6 winter concert.

Beginning in June 2006, the school will rent out the center. "It will be a multi-purpose venue," says Stapleton, who hopes to book the facility with plays, musicals, choir and orchestral concerts, speakers and literary figures who will do readings for the English department.

"The goal is that it is first and foremost an educational facility. So we want to invite performers and lecturers that will be of value to our students, in terms of what they can teach them," he says. So far he has received a request from the Indian community to hold dance recitals.

Aside from providing students a venue that is far superior acoustically and physically than the school gym or cafeteria, the center will provide additional benefit to both Saratoga High School and the Saratoga community itself, Stapleton says.

Not only will the school gain revenue from booking performances, but Stapleton hopes that the center will attract a variety of quality performances that will enrich the lives of Saratogans.

However, amidst all the positive feedback, Stapleton is aware of potential problems that could arise--specifically in regards to parking and the surrounding neighborhood. "The campus and administration are working together to prevent parking issues. For example, we're not going to schedule a major performance on the same night as a football game," Stapleton says.

"We are very conscious about our neighborhood. We don't want to overload it," he adds.

For now, students, teachers and audience members alike are enjoying the much-improved facility and working out the kinks before renting it out in June. "We finally have a facility that can deal with the acoustics far better than a church or gym. And from an audience perspective, it's comfortable, grand and beautiful," Stapleton says.