New Drama Teacher Hails from Canadian

One look at Mr. Cacciola-Price and you might think: oh he’s just the new drama teacher this year. With his gray cardigan, brown jeans and striped green shirt he looks like your ordinary teacher. However, Mr. Cacciola-Price has been anything but ordinary throughout his life, especially since he’s moved to New York from Canadian, Texas.

“Every time I say I’m from Canadian people assume that I’m from Canada. They’re like: oh there’s a town called Texas in Canada? No. I’m from Canadian, Texas,” he laughs.

Mr. Cacciola-Price has been talented and involved in the arts since his high school days. “I was an All-State tuba player when I was in high school. It was a big deal,” he stated proudly, slightly adjusting his black glasses.

A few months after moving to New York from California, where he went to undergrad school after high school, he was casted in the national tour of “Kiss me Kate,” a musical by Cole Porter. After being involved in various other shows and projects over the years he decided he didn’t want to live out of a suitcase anymore and decided to teach the craft he loved so much. However, his craft wasn’t always without its flaws. He admits his most embarrassing moment during his career was when he performed in “Damn Yankees.”

“There was all of this choreography where we kept on going into these deep pliés and I kept noticing all these people pointing, but I didn’t think anything about it. Then I looked down and my pants were unzipped and I was wearing red underwear and my pants were white, so every time I opened and closed my legs you would see the red,” he exclaimed while demonstrating the choreography.

Mr. Cacciola-Price attended NYU, Steinhart to get his Masters Degree in English and Educational theatre. He then taught at New Design High School and the Dual language and Asian Studies High School.

“I was actually teaching elementary drama last fall. So, I was teaching drama to K-5, they were really cute. We did a lot of playwriting and some of their plays were adorable and I also taught Shakespeare to fifth graders,” he says.

Mr. Cacciola-Price has also been working on an ethno-dramatic play called “Sanctuary” about the experiences of LGBT homeless youth in New York and is going to have a reading of the play in the spring. He will also be directing “The Names That Hurt” on October 18th at FSSA, as well as the musical theatre show and the junior and sophomore drama shows in 2014. In his free time Mr. Cacciola-Price also sings in a gospel choir.

by Carolina Campero ’14

Photo: Alex Gross  ’14