Alum Nicholas Pappas Returns to Moorpark College to Teach, Direct Theatre

MOORPARK ACORN -- Twenty Moorpark College theatre students were scattered onstage and in the first few rows of the auditorium, chatting with fellow cast members and practicing lines during a recent “Almost, Maine” afternoon play rehearsal. Dressed in a bright plaid shirt and striped beanie, director and instructor Nicholas Pappas almost blended in with his students as he sat center stage to give notes on two students’ performances. Pappas, a 33-year-old playwright, has returned to direct on the same Moorpark College stage where his love for theater developed as a student. Pappas’ days as a Moorpark student ended when he transferred to San Francisco State University. He earned theatre performance and English undergraduate degrees, and at the encouragement of his university adviser, stayed at the school to pursue a Master of Fine Arts in Creative Writing.