Written by orange• September 15, 2026• 2:47 pm• Laguna beach, Laguna Playhouse, Review, Theater, Uncategorized

World Premiere: Wild Child the musical @ Laguna Playhouse – Review

Written by Patrick Chavis

World Premiere of Wild Child, the musical, playing now at the Laguna Playhouse, September 9 – October 4, 2026.

Wild Child, the musical, at the Laguna Playhouse in sunny Laguna Beach has creative technical gems that would be hard to replicate. However, it struggles to express many of the internal stories it attempts to depict visually on stage.

Story:

Wild Child, the musical, follows Rina (Salima Gangani) and Darin (Davide Costa), two video gamers who love the same online game, Wild Child. Unbeknownst to them, they play each other in the game as avatars Roses (Yana Perrault) and Kiton (Brian Whitehill). Since both of them are dealing with personal struggles. They’re sent to the same wilderness therapy program where they must leave their phones and technology behind and connect with their fellow campers and the great outdoors. This show explores themes of disconnection, trauma, and family dynamics.

I was getting a modern-day Breakfast Club vibe from the show. The Breakfast Club works better, though, because the characters are forced to clash and the conflicts are more pronounced. While this musical has diverse, relatable characters, they’re mostly paired off: Rina with Darin, or Lynd (Amanda Angeles) and (Phoenix) Gaby Dahlen. There’s nothing wrong with these moments, of course, which usually lead into a tune, and these largely young actors can all hold a tune. It lacks weight, and it’s hard to get attached to these characters.

Acting/Set:

This is not an amateur production. This cast has some real voices and some effortless performances. Jacob Zelonky (Tom) plays more of the comic relief in this play, and I wish they gave him more to do. He’s expressive and charismatic on stage. Tom had a great sense of humor and an obvious substance abuse issue, but the character felt underwritten, despite the relevance of the topic at this time. The play left a lot of drama on the floor. The side characters were more interesting than the two leads. Rina’s conflict is so small; she mentions it in the script, in an instance of meta commentary that fell flat. The play is so sanitized, like a Disney Channel Original Movie, that the issues don’t elicit the seriousness they deserve.

The production uses a good amount of layered set design, using moving treadmills to simulate movement during scenes. Large physical structures resemble a mini indoor wilderness.

REI, eat your heart out—also, shout-out to the city of Tustin.

This set is way more exciting than REI, I will say that. Nathan Scheuer and Cat Wilson’s projection design was beautifully rendered onto the stage in multiple ways.

Sidelining the concept of Roses and Kiton may have been a better idea. At the very least, they could have integrated the video game and the show’s outside world better. Or alternatively, the play could have focused more on the main characters, and even the side characters, with an overall good concept and groovy tunes.