A Point Loma High School Treasure: Larry Zeiger — the Teacher, the Artist, the Legend!

By Lynne Miller

In 21st Century USA, it is unlikely to find a rite of passage into adulthood. Hawaiian boys living in the 1700s plunged from high cliffs into clear water as a passage ritual.  Point Loma high school seniors sign up for Larry Zeiger’s English class where they write, direct, sing and dance their way to graduation. At least they did for 33 years, until Zeiger retired.

For 7 nights, right in the middle of studying for finals, the Zeiger seniors performed to sellout crowds. Every parent in the audience watched in amazement as their child dove off the cliff through the Gotta Sing, Gotta Dance portal.

Jocks, poets, artists and nerds write the musical, make the sets, discover hidden talents and rehearse for months.  Zeiger’s passion for performing arts and his willingness to work long hours after teaching classes all day brought the magic of theater to Point Loma students, parents and community.

Larry left the cold winters of his childhood in Cleveland Heights, Ohio and attended the University of Miami where he studied Psychology and Cinema Arts.  Adventure was brewing with some close friends who were looking for a grad school in a warm climate, and it is our good fortune that they chose to study at San Diego State. Zeiger studied Communication Arts with emphasis on Film and TV Journalism. Larry worked at Muirlands Jr. High School while he was going to State and discovered his love for teaching.

Point Loma HIgh School may never have encountered the formidable force of Larry Zeiger if the L.A. smog had dissipated ‘that’ day.  Larry was driving from San Diego to USC School of Film through a dirty haze that tasted as toxic as it looked. During his interview he learned that the School of Film (which is very competitive), would not accept any of his graduate units from San Diego State.  The topping on the L.A. Day was a parking ticket that stopped Zeiger’s move to Los Angeles.

In 1975 after receiving teaching credentials, Larry landed a job at Point Loma High School.  It was an amazing time to enter teaching, there was a variety of semester pilot programs for Juniors and Seniors.  Zeiger explains: “The English Department was offering courses like Mysticism,Magic, Fantasy, and Science Fiction, Women in Literature, and Creative Writing.  I developed Musical Theater as Literature as an English elective program.”

At the end of the school year the district fires probationary teachers based on projected attendance.  The newest teachers usually receive the dreaded ‘pink slip’ and may have to look for other district jobs.  After his first year Zeiger received a pink slip. When students and staff found out they put together a walkout protest.  Larry did not know what was happening until someone told him to look out of the window. News media was there filming a few hundred students, staff members and parents who were demanding that Mr. Zeiger remain at Point Loma.  The Board of Education listened, and Zeiger remained at PLHS until he retired in 2007.

Larry offered a variety of English courses from Film as Literature to Musical Theater that was named by students as simply “The Zeiger Show.”  Students left their advanced classes, athletes opted out of or shortened their season, so that they could enroll in film and musical theater with their friends and the master teacher.

The evolving Zeiger electives grew from skits with songs, dance, and comedy to fully connected stories about local and current events. The students evolved from skit writers to screenplay writers.  They learned the art of storytelling, which is foundational for successful, entertaining communication, often with a lesson embedded in the tale.  The Gotta Sing Gotta Dance production morphed from a 2-3 week activity to a full semester course culminating in 7 nights of packed crowds.

Do you remember the year that Winona Ryder was caught shoplifting?  The Zeiger student playwriters wrote a comedy based on that real story, and it went viral, internationally. Eventually the video got into Winona’s hands who loved it and included it in her AMC Biography.

One afternoon a student ran into Zeiger’s class, shouting, ”Zeiger, someone is on the campus looking for you! It’s Jason Scheff!”  While the students were visibly excited hoping to get a glimpse of the lead singer of Chicago, Larry looked pensive.  He thought back to his conversation with Jason who was a student in his Film Production and English classes.  Larry remembered that Jason was an amazing participant in class, smart and entertaining, his homework not so much.  Zeiger set the bar high for his students, but the future and famous Chicago band member told him that he practiced playing guitar 6 hours a day after school, and he was not going to give up his dream of a career in rock n’ roll to do homework.  The best teachers are not too proud to learn from their students.

As I questioned Mr. Zeiger asking him about his teaching career, I realized that his answers included stories of his students’ successes.  That first year at PLHS when students walked out on his behalf was a precursor of his lifelong dance with his Gotta Sing Gotta Dance seniors.

When Larry talks about his students his pride for them is palpable.  Many stay in contact with him for years. “I don’t want to forget anyone, but there are so many.”
Here is a partial list of students and their success.

• Halle Stanford (Class of 1987) received an Emmy for her work with the Jim Hansen Company.
• Aaron Zigman (Class of 1980) composer, producer, songwriter and musician created scores for many movies including The Notebook.
• Chris Brinker (Class of 1988) producer and director, including The Boondock Saints.
• Kathryn Bigelow, a producer received many awards including two Emmys, including the Hurt Locker.
• Breehn Burns is a brilliant artist and animator.
• Maureen Foley (Class of 1980) now known as Mo Weneta is lead singer in a local band.
• Mark Miller (Class of 1994) plays lead guitar in local bands

There are students who are performing locally like Glenn Fisher, Mark Fisher, Aaron Markland, Miles Dougherty, Brian Verhoys.

Some of his students are now on Broadway, like Spencer Moses (class of 1995) and Matt Harrington (Class of 1999 who stole the show singing Mr. Cellophane).

If you want to become part of The Zeiger extended family, part of the community that attended Gotta Sing, Gotta Dance, year after year, there is a way.  It is not too late.  Ted Caplanaris compiled highlights of all of the Zieger PLHS shows.  Here is the link

You can probably guess that Larry is busy creating during his retirement.  He and a friend wrote a book that you can get on Amazon, Nice Legs: A Pairing of Wine and Words.  The last few pages of the book will provide a more complete list of students and their careers.

He has booked monthly concerts a year in advance at the Point Loma Public Library. He has produced 30 CDs with original music.

The magic of learning begins with two ingredients, open minds and inspiring teachers.  We all know that there are a handful of teachers we remember and treasure.  There is no magic without leaders, especially teachers, who open doors to the creative mind and encourage us to be open and explore.

Hanging in Larry’s class was a sign that read:
If you can talk you can sing, if you can walk you can dance.

Not all of the performers believed in themselves, and without  encouragement they would not have stepped onto the stage. Teachers read their students, directors read their audience, and Larry did both.

Some students with tough backgrounds met that one adult who changed their lives.  They discovered their worth and strength during the time they worked with Zeiger.

Don’t imagine that the point of Musical Theater was to nurture only a life in the performing arts. Without taking a deep dive into the learning process I will plant a seed:  the right brain activities that enhance whole brain learning are often missing or neglected in schools.  Art, Music, Performing Arts, and Athletics are neurologically speaking, the freeways to expanded awareness and integrated learning. Learning is faster, more complete, and more lasting when the whole brain is engaged.  More importantly personal growth that impacts both intellectual and emotional maturity are dependent upon right brain processing. So when Larry tells me a student from a really tough background went forward to get a PhD and became a director of education, I suspect Zeiger had something to do with that.  It only takes one person to believe in you.  Sometimes that is enough.

Not everyone gets to do what they love.  It is clear that Zeiger loved what he did.  However, he had to create it.  The system didn’t do the work, he did.  Sometimes, especially in those first years, the system was open and encouraged creators by giving them freedom to think outside of the box.  Of course, they didn’t give teachers like Larry funding.  That first year sets were created on free giant refrigerator boxes, and students provided the artwork.

The cafeteria is where the acts were performed.  A few years into his career the principal offered Larry the use of the Auditorium.  Larry purchased and provided all of the necessary equipment for the shows, and soon ticket sales purchased all of the cameras, lighting, sound, etc and money was left over to help out the school.

When I asked Larry to tell me what he would like to see for education and what he liked the most about his career he said:

“I would love to see more programs that include the arts .  There is not much funded or encouraged .  Some principals were supportive, some were not.  I liked watching the students embrace what I was teaching them.  They studied film making, and produced their own films and stage shows.  They discovered talents, worked together to problem solve and create, put in long hours of rehearsal and performing.”

I am sad for all the grandchildren and siblings who won’t go through this rite of passage.  They won’t have the opportunity to dive into the singing and dancing experience known as The Zeiger Show. My hope is that one of Larry’s students will decide to create a program at PLHS that will offer students an elective using the Zeiger model as a blueprint, because today’s students Gotta Sing, Gotta Dance too!