November 22, 2025 Local Stories in and Around St. Joseph, Illinois

5 Questions with Al Pearman

Al Pearman plays Ben in St. Joseph-Ogden’s “The Descendents”. We asked Al five questions before the final show today at 2 p.m. Here are the answers.

Describe Ben.
Ben is the polite,and perhaps too kind, soon-to-be King of Auradon who has aspirations of finally connecting the two parts of his disjointed kingdom with the help of a few choice “villains.”

Was it challenging doing a play that people are so familiar with?
Absolutely. It’s much more difficult to make a character your own when you have such big shoes to fill, especially for well-known characters like Ben and the Evils. But I think it’s also an opportunity to show the audience how dedicated we are to our characters and to experiment within the range of what a well-known character would do.

What was the most challenging part of the production?
The most difficult part of our show this year was almost certainly the time constraints. Between the finishing of our new auditorium and moving show dates earlier to accommodate other conflicts we were left with less time than I would’ve liked to get this show off the ground, but I think we still did a great job despite those hurdles.

What was your favorite part?
My favorite part of our productions every year is the choreography. Our wonderful choreographer Darcy never fails to make spectacular dance numbers that are fun for both us performers and the audience. I may not be the best dancer up there, but I’m almost certain I’m having the most fun!

What can people expect from the play?
You can expect a great show full of villainy, magic, and some great music to match! We’ve all put so much work into this show and we hope you all come to love it as much as we do.

in Schools
Banner
Related Posts

St. Joseph Middle School 8th Grade High Honor Roll

November 14, 2023

November 14, 2023

8th grade Ava Alexander Ava Bronowski Liam Carter Patrick Clark Carly Coffey Tessa Cox Avarie Dietiker Hunter Dilley Ainsley Dirksmeyer...

St. Joseph Middle School 5th grade honor roll

November 14, 2023

November 14, 2023

FIRST NAME LAST NAME Sophia Albrecht Madison Beeler Abigail Bewley Kynleigh Blunier Connor Bowman Naomi Cavanaugh Konlee Christians Henry Cluver...

SJO first quarter honor roll

November 14, 2023

November 14, 2023

Freshman Acosta-Reyes, YadielAlbrecht, SamuelCastro Gutierrez, BrendaEnnis, JamesonGaines, LeahGarrett, ElijahGeorge, GunnarHuls, MorganHundley, AidenIkemire, BrynnJackson, FaithJones, WaylonLewis, JaydonLyttle, AvriannaPalmer, TrippWarns, ShelbyWright, CameronWright,...

SJO seniors earn $2 million in scholarships

June 14, 2019

June 14, 2019

The senior class at St. Joseph-Ogden High School received $2 million in scholarship money. Principal Gary Page told the Board...

St. Joseph Middle School announces honor rolls

January 30, 2019

January 30, 2019

7th gradeHIGH HONORS Logan Allen Owen Baltzell Payton Carter Maya Chahine Rachel Divan Sadie Ericksen Joseph Frasca Addison Frick Logan...

‘Helping them reach their potential is humbling and rewarding at the same time’

January 26, 2023

January 26, 2023

A performance today will culminate one of the most powerful artistic and personal experiences Justin Lee has had in his...

SJO 2021-2022 1st Quarter Honor Roll

October 29, 2021

October 29, 2021

Freshmen Allinger, OliviaAltenbaumer, JaredBesson, WilliamBirt, EliBirt, MilesBowlin, ChazBrazelton, HoldenButts, LandenChatterton, SarahChristians, PresleeFrerichs, LylaGriebat, JoeGuido, MasonHesterberg, HaleyIdeus, TinleyJohnson, KendrickJohnson, SethKindle, AmilliyaKnap,...

PVO Jr High Seventh grade honor roll

April 27, 2023

April 27, 2023

7 th Grade Highest Honors (3.7-4.0)Tyler BonnyIsabella FrerichsCasen GoffGaby GomezKellyn IrwinRoyce LoschenLane McKinneyConnor McMahonAtleigh MillerAirin RashKeegan RobertsKorinne TravisEvelyn ValentineLucas WatersAdyn...

SJO second quarter honor roll

January 13, 2022

January 13, 2022

FreshmenAllinger, OliviaAltenbaumer, JaredBirt, EliBirt, MilesBowlin, ChazButts, LandenChatterton, SarahCoffey, HaydenFisher, JackFrerichs, LylaGriebat, JoeHarms, BrodieJohnson, SethJones, DylanKrall, AidenLacey, AbigailLackey, LoganMarschke, AudraPalmer, ChayseReifsteck,...

‘I have always known that the community of St. Joseph values and supports its schools’

November 7, 2023

November 7, 2023

Lance Landeck knows how important its schools are to St. Joseph. That’s why he applied to be the new superintendent...

Hallett is new SRO in place at St. Joseph, PVO schools

September 10, 2019

September 10, 2019

Champaign County Sheriff’s Deputy Shawn Hallett has always held the police in high regard. “As a child, I remember having...

St. Joseph MIddel School 7th Grade High Honor Roll

November 9, 2021

November 9, 2021

Ahart, Lillian Barbee, Zhou Bello, Abigail Burnett, Colin Clark, Elizabeth Crider, Abigail Dahl, Hayden Davis, Iris Farber, Madison Franzen, Nolan...

Live at SJO school board, April 22, 2024

April 22, 2024

April 22, 2024

I am at SJO school board so you don’t have to be. Emily Williams has resigned as dance coach after...

Live at SJO school board, January 23, 2023

January 23, 2023

January 23, 2023

I am here until 8 p.m cause Matt has to go back into work. They are discussing sports field placement...

SJO Third Quarter Honor Roll

March 30, 2021

March 30, 2021

FreshmenArmstrong, AdenBott, MyaBuss, TylerDenhart, GarrettFrasca, JosephHayes, JayciLannert, LaurenMaroon, CarsonMcBride, SethMcMahon, ShannonSantiago, DanielWard, ElissiaWilson, Spencer SophomoresActon, AlyssaAlwes, CanyonBurch, TaylorCarter, PaytonChatterton, GwenCollins,...

Comments
Leave a Reply