“I’m like Shrek. I’m like this onion. You just keep peeling it back.”
Russell Levine teaches AP World History and AVID 10 at Colton High. Recently, he has become invested in transforming himself into the Jolly Ol’ Elf, Santa Claus for the holiday.
“I said, you know what? I think I’m just gonna grow my beard out, and we’ll see how that works out . . . I’m bleaching my beard, which I never thought I would do, to try to turn it white.”
After school, he is the advisor of the Fashion Club, where he provides sewing machines for students to learn how to sew. He has special interests in pirates, magic, and crafting.
Levine explained how he would take his grandchildren to Bass Pro Shop to see Santa, but COVID shut that down for Mr. Levine’s family. That is when his wife suggested he could be Santa.
“I got a little bit more serious about being Santa Claus. I started going to Santa Claus school and learning about Santa Claus.”
Santa School has really helped Levine excel in his training, in which he has gained greater understanding of storytelling and developing stage presence. He was able to meet big time Santa Clauses Tim Connaghan and Santa True. He is also learning how to respond to the various and unexpected questions that kids tend to ask. To prepare for this, he reads a list of the top 101 questions kids ask Santa. Being Santa Claus isn’t just a walk in the park. Levine elaborates on the pressure that is put on Santa Claus.
“You have a minute and a half maybe to make a magical impression with that child. And they’re going to walk away with either a smile on their face or be like, ‘That was the worst Santa ever!’… you ruin it for every single other Santa out there.”
And the results have been immediate. All December, Levine is booked as Santa at the LA Zoo, and hosting brunches on the Queen Mary.
Levine is no stranger to stepping out of his comfort zone.
He has always tried keeping himself busy with something, whether it be magic, crafting, or even business. Before he became involved with teaching, he used to work at Domino’s Pizza.
“I kept getting promoted, promoted, promoted, and then the opportunity says, ‘Hey, you could own your own.’ And I was like, ‘Hey, that sounds okay.’ Never done it before, didn’t have any experience with it, but what’s the worst thing that could happen?”
He expressed that another reason he has been able to do so many things in his life is because “I’ve just never been afraid of failure per se. It’s like, you know, that line that says, ‘better to have tried and failed than never to have tried at all.'”
He knew that being Santa would be a big deal.
Colton High School held its talent show where Levine played Santa for a local audience. “I get pumped up off the adrenaline that you get when you’re performing in front of people.”
He expressed that there is an importance like never before to have Christmas magic for the whole family and when he is Santa, he hopes to provide that magical experience that really sticks with the family.
“There’s a lot of things that we tend to lose, a lot of personal stuff as we grow older. It’s no fault of anyone’s, that’s just the way society is. So Santa hopes to try to fill that gap and have that little bit of magic.”
This magic isn’t always just about the gifts, but also about creating a rare moment of human interaction. By giving a child his complete attention, he makes them feel seen and important, he supports a sense of wonder and positive values like kindness and love. His role is to offer an authentic, personal connection that is ever so important in this day and age.
Levine hopes that students can cherish one magical asset in life. “Go out, experience life, go places, take job opportunities where you got to move around… experience the world.”
Santa Levine hopes to have the opportunity to spark a little magic in life through his jolly spirits and wishes everyone a very Merry Christmas.