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Students Receive Awards at 40th Annual Shakespeare Competition

This weekend the 40th annual Shakespeare Competition, hosted by the Utah Shakespeare Festival and Southern Utah University, gave out dozens of awards and scholarships to drama, dance and music students. The competition is the largest scholastic Shakespeare competition in the country, and this was a record-breaking year with over 3,000 students from 106 schools in six states.                                                              

From October 6 through 8 students competed before numerous adjudicators on the Festival’s stages and at several other venues on the SUU campus. Judges consisted of arts professionals with strong literary and performance backgrounds. The judges came to Cedar City from across the country, including New York and Los Angeles, and not only judged the competition, but provided critiques of performances and gave feedback to the young artists. Judges also offered numerous workshops on topics such as stage combat, improvisation, movement, modern dance techniques, and choral performance.

“There really is nothing like the Shakespeare Competition,” said Michael Bahr, education director for the Festival. “For forty years the competition has provided young people an outlet to share their passion and excitement for the arts, while also cultivating the future generation of arts professionals.”

 Providing wonderful opportunities, the competition recognizes and educates students in four areas: acting, dance/choreography, music, and technical theatre. At the conclusion of the competition selected students received trophies and scholarships to study with professionals at Southern Utah University and the Utah Shakespeare Festival.

 As part of the total experience, students were able to attend the Festival’s productions of The Cocoanuts, The Odd Couple Murder for Two, and Julius Caesar, as well as an SUU production of Twelfth Night.

 The competition was divided into six divisions: Buckingham (for schools with enrollment of 2,001 or more), Oxford (enrollment of 1,701 to 2,000), Cambridge (enrollment of 801 to 1,700), Westminster (enrollment of 800 or fewer), Stratford (junior high and middle schools of any size) and Essex (schools or groups which are not members of state high school associations).

Acting Competition

For the acting portion of the competition, students were able to compete in monlogues, duo/trio scenes, and ensembles. Monologue competitors presented for the judges a two- to four-minute monologue from a Shakespeare play or sonnet. In the duo/trio scenes competition, two or three actors presented a three- to five-minute scene from a Shakespeare play or sonnet. In the ensemble competition, a group of students from a school presented a six- to ten-minute Shakespearean scene.

In addition, first, second, and third place overall sweepstake prizes were awarded to the school in each division with the most total points from all categories.

Also, several scholarships were presented in the acting competition:

The first place winners in the duo/trio scene and monologue categories are awarded scholarships to either Southern Utah University or the Utah Shakespeare Festival summer classes, depending on the grade of the student.

Ray Jones Award: Given to seniors, this award is a $1000 scholarship to Southern Utah University.

Barbara Barrett Award: Given to juniors and under, this award is a $500 scholarship tothe Festival’s summer acting intensive Actor Training, or a tuition scholarship to Shakespeare for Junior Actors.

Larry Lott Acting Award: In conjunction with the ensemble competition, judges annually recognize the best actor in an ensemble scene in each division. The recipient of this award received a trophy for his or her accomplishments and, if a senior, a $1,000 scholarship to SUU.

ACTING WINNERS

Buckingham Division

Sweepstakes First Place: Skyridge High School; Lehi, Utah
Sweepstakes Second Place (tie): Hillcrest High School; Midvale, Utah; and Pleasant Grove High School; Pleasant Grove, Utah

Ensemble First Place: American Fork High School; American Fork, Utah
Ensemble Second Place: Tuacahn High School; Ivins, Utah
Ensemble Third Place: Hillcrest High School; Midvale, Utah

Ray Jones/ Barbara Barrett Award and Duo/Trio Scenes First Place: Connor Bate, Zack Elzey, and Oakley Thacker; Lone Peak High School; Highland, Utah
Duo/Trio Scenes Second Place: Nathanael Abbott and Faith Johnson; Hillcrest High School; Midvale, Utah
Duo/Trio Scenes Third Place: Steven Hooley, Lindsey Kenner, and Madison Parker; Hillcrest High School; Midvale, Utah

Ray Jones Award and Monologue First Place: Braden Pittard; Skyridge High School; Lehi, Utah
Monologue Second Place: Kyle Hollingshaus; Orem High School; Orem, Utah
Monologue Third Place: Benjamin Schulzke; Pleasant Grove High School; Pleasant Grove, Utah

Larry Lott Acting Award: Ashlee Brouwer; American Fork High School; American Fork, Utah

Oxford Division

Sweepstakes First Place: Corner Canyon High School; Draper, Utah
Sweepstakes Second Place: Lehi High School; Lehi, Utah
Sweepstakes Third Place: Sandy High School; Orem, Utah

Ensemble First Place: Corner Canyon High School; Draper, Utah
Ensemble Second Place: Lehi High School; Lehi, Utah
Ensemble Third Place: Northridge High School; Layton, Utah

Ray Jones Award and Duo/Trio Scenes First Place: Jaci Hulse and Marguerite Morgan; Maple Mountain High School; Spanish Fork, Utah
Duo/Trio Scenes Second Place: Stoney Grayer and Justin Vass; Corner Canyon High School; Draper, Utah
Duo/Trio Scenes Third Place: Bailee Miner and Allie Petersen; Lehi High School; Lehi, Utah

***Ray Jones Award and Monologue First Place:***Isabella Giordano; Highland High School; Salt Lake City, Utah
Monologue Second Place: Rachel Shaw; Layton High School; Layton, Utah
Monologue Third Place: Mikela Marvin; Salem Hills High School; Salem, Utah

Larry Lott Acting Award: Isabella Giordano; Highland High School; Salt Lake City, Utah

Cambridge Division

Sweepstakes First Place (tie): Salt Lake School for the Performing Arts; Salt Lake City, Utah and Spanish Fork High School; Spanish Fork, Utah
Sweepstakes Third Place: Skyline High School; Salt Lake City, Utah

Ensemble First Place: Spanish Fork High School; Spanish Fork, Utah
Ensemble Second Place: Skyline High School; Salt Lake City, Utah
Ensemble Third Place: Cedar High School; Cedar City, Utah

Barbara Barrett Award and Duo/Trio Scenes First Place: Makayla Blair, Trey McEuen, and Sumner Schoell; Salt Lake School for the Performing Arts; Salt Lake City, Utah
Duo/Trio Second Place: Brynn Duncan and Thomas Moore; Juan Diego High School; Draper, Utah
Duo/Trio Third Place: Keldon Lopez, Shawn Stutz, and Landon Taylor; Mountain View High School; Orem, Utah

Ray Jones Award and Monologue First Place: Casey Josephson; Salt Lake School for the Performing Arts; Salt Lake City, Utah
Monologue Second Place: Amanda Gould; Spanish Fork High School; Spanish Fork, Utah
Monologue Third Place: Olivia Sham; Cedar City High School; Cedar City, Utah

Larry Lott Acting Award: Mekenzie Davies; Skyline High School; Salt Lake City, Utah

Westminster Division

Sweepstakes First Place: Liahona Senior Preparatory Academy; Pleasant Grove, Utah
Sweepstakes Second Place (tie): American International School of Utah; Murray, Utah; and Rockwell Charter High School; Eagle Mountain, Utah

Ensemble First Place: American International School of Utah; Murray, Utah;
Ensemble Second Place: Liahona Senior Preparatory Academy; Pleasant Grove, Utah
Ensemble Third Place: Western Christian High School; Upland, California

Ray Jones/ Barbara Barrett Award and Duo/Trio Scenes First Place: Joleah Long, Anthony Madsen, and Lincoln Stone; Liahona Senior Preparatory Academy; Pleasant Grove, Utah
Duo/Trio Scenes Second Place (tie): Jordan Bennion, Trev Davis, and Charlotte Meyers; Liahona Senior Preparatory Academy; Pleasant Grove, Utah; and Cornelia Li, Claudia Lin, and Daniel Zhu; American Leadership Academy; Spanish Fork, Utah

Barbara Barrett Award and Monologue First Place: Moriya Nelson; American International School of Utah; Spanish Fork, Utah
Monologue Second Place: Eva Perkins; San Juan High School; Blanding, Utah
Monologue Third Place: Rebekah Harrison; American Leadership Academy; Spanish Fork, Utah

Larry Lott Acting Award: Boston Smith; Providence Hall High School; Herriman, Utah

Stratford Division

Sweepstakes First Place: Liahona Junior Preparatory Academy; Lehi, Utah
Sweepstakes Second Place (tie): Diamond Fork Junior High School; Spanish Fork, Utah; and Karl G. Maesar Preparatory Academy; Lindon, Utah

Ensemble First Place: Diamond Fork Junior High School; Spanish Fork, Utah
Ensemble Second Place: DaVinci Academy Junior High School; Ogden, Utah
Ensemble Third Place: Spanish Fork Junior High School; Spanish Fork, Utah

Barbara Barrett Award and Duo/Trio Scenes First Place: Elise Day, Barak Davis, Abigail Fadely; Liahona Junior Preparatory Academy; Lehi, Utah
Duo/Trio Scenes Second Place: Katie Rowley and Aubrey Wilkinson; Liahona Junior Preparatory Academy; Lehi, Utah
Duo/Trio Scenes Third Place: Becca Linford and Thomas Webb; Karl G. Maesar Preparatory Academy; Lindon, Utah

Barbara Barrett Award and Monologue First Place: Kip Conger; DaVinci Academy Junior High School; Ogden, Utah
Monologue Second Place: Lindsey Oliverson; Spanish Fork Junior High School; Spanish Fork, Utah
Monologue Third Place: Hawken Kerr; Liahona Junior Preparatory Academy; Lehi, Utah

Larry Lott Acting Award: Kip Conger; DaVinci Academy Junior High School; Ogden, Utah

Essex Division

Sweepstakes First Place: Logan Youth Shakespeare; Logan, Utah
Sweepstakes Second Place: First Stage Theatre Academy; Milwaukee, Wisconsin
Sweepstakes Third Place: Youth Theatre-University of Utah; Salt Lake City, Utah

Ensemble First Place: Logan Youth Shakespeare; Logan, Utah
Ensemble Second Place: Jean Massieu School of the Deaf; Salt Lake City, Utah
Ensemble Third Place: Youth Theatre-University of Utah; Salt Lake City, Utah

Ray Jones Award and Duo/Trio Scenes First Place: Lawson Mitchell and Alexandra Salter; First Stage Theatre Academy; Milwaukee, Wisconsin
Duo/Trio Scenes Second Place: Maddie Elledge, Isabella Ingham, and Christian Labertew; Youth Theatre-University of Utah; Salt Lake City, Utah
Duo/Trio Scenes Third Place: Rhett Carbine, Sarah Dalley, Bella Holladay, Emily Robertso, Sami Soloman-Kiebba, and Mary Weight; Jean Massieu School of the Deaf; Salt Lake City, Utah

Barbara Barrett Award and Monologue First Place: Clay Webb; Youth Theatre-University of Utah; Salt Lake City, Utah
Monologue Second Place: Merideth Perches; Lincoln Academy; Pleasant Grove, Utah
Monologue Third Place: Caleb Fralick; Utah Center of Performing Arts; Midvale, Utah

Larry Lott Acting Award: Sidney Salter; First Stage Theatre Academy; Milwaukee, Wisconsin

Dance/Choreography Competition

For the dance portion, students were able to compete in duo/trio or ensemble groups. In the duo/trio competition, two or three dancers presented a three- to six-minute interpretation of a Shakespeare play or sonnet. In the ensemble competition, a group of dancers from a school interpreted a three- to four-minute Shakespeare play or sonnet.

DANCE WINNERS

The Dance Scholarships to Southern Utah University were awarded to Josie Price of Provo High School, Provo, Utah; and Megan Fuhriman of Salt Lake School of Performing Arts, Salt Lake City, Utah.

Buckingham Division

Ensemble First Place: Westlake High School; Saratoga Springs, Utah
Ensemble Second Place: Tuacahn High School for the Performing Arts; Ivins, Utah
Ensemble Third Place: Lone Peak High School; Highland, Utah

Duo/Trio Scenes First Place: Misha Sawyer, Cagen regeagle, and Caler Tregeagle; Orem High School; Orem, Utah
Duo/Trio Scenes Second Place: Megan Daneals, Mariah Jones, and Tyree Newkirk; Westlake High School; Saratoga Springs, Utah
Duo/Trio Scenes Third Place: Mikey Rowe, Kaylie Walker, and Heather Winkler; Riverton High School; Riverton, Utah

Oxford Division

Ensemble First Place: Provo High School; Provo, Utah
Ensemble Second Place: Lehi High School; Lehi, Utah
Ensemble Third Place: Timpanogos High School; Orem, Utah

Duo/Trio Scenes First Place: Keslie Fuller, Jessica Holden, Josie Prince; Provo High School; Provo, Utah
Duo/Trio Scenes Second Place: Mackenzie Heyland, Raynee Larking, and Lauren Thompson; Corner Canyon High School; Draper, Utah
Duo/Trio Scenes Third Place: Alyana Bentley and Sierra Bryant; Taylorsville High School; Taylorsville, Utah

Cambridge Division

Ensemble First Place: Salt Lake School of Performing Arts; Salt Lake City, Utah
Ensemble Second Place: Desert Hills High School; St. George, Utah
Ensemble Third Place: Canyon View High School; Cedar City, Utah

Duo/Trio First Place: Brianna Barrow and Sarah Hancock; Pine View High School; St. George, Utah
Duo/Trio Second Place: Isabelle Sampson, Karly Snow, and Kimball Wastlund; Desert Hills High School, St. George, Utah
Duo/Trio Third Place: Celine David and Emma Hansen; Salt Lake School of Performing Arts; Salt Lake City, Utah

Westminster Division

Ensemble First Place: Rockwell Charter High School; Eagle Mountain, Utah
Ensemble Second Place: American International School of Utah; Murray, Utah
Ensemble Third Place: Western Christian High School; Upland, California

Duo/Trio First Place: Sophie Norvell, Katerina Winkler, and Annabelle Zimmer; DaVinci Academy Senior High School; Ogden, Utah
Duo/Trio Second Place: Rhain Boulter, Harley Kettle, and Cassandra Nelson; Rockwell Charter High School; Eagle Mountain, Utah
Duo/Trio Third Place: Ephraim Maxwell and Jessica Mohammad; American International School of Utah; Murray, Utah

Stratford Division

Ensemble First Place: Vista Heights Middle School; Saratoga Springs, Utah
Ensemble Second Place: Timberline Middle School; Alpine, Utah
Ensemble Third Place: Spanish Fork Junior High School; Spanish Fork, Utah

Duo/Trio Scenes First Place: Samantha Cecil, Georgia Johnson, Katelyn Lawson; Karl G. Maeser Preparatory Academy; Lindon, Utah
Duo/Trio Scenes Second Place: Paige Burtenshaw, Aimsley Call, and Emma Martin; Spanish Fork Junior High School; Spanish Fork, Utah
Duo/Trio Scenes Third Place: Jessie Carter, Brynn Lee, and Eden Seely; Timberline Middle School; Alpine, Utah

Essex Division

Ensemble First Place: Youth Theatre-University of Utah; Salt Lake City, Utah
Ensemble Second Place: Walden School of Liberal Arts; Provo, Utah

Music Competition

The music competition encouraged students to explore and develop a relationship with the music of the Renaissance (music prior to 1650). Students were encouraged to utilize creative combinations of instruments, however no instrumentation was required. For the music competition, students were able to compete in Madrigals and Minstrels. Madrigals (a minimum of five people) presented six- to ten-minutes of Renaissance music. Minstrels (one to four people) presented three- to seven-minutes of Renaissance music.

MUSIC WINNERS

Madrigal Competition

First Place: Pleasant Grove High School; Pleasant Grove, Utah
Second Place: Tuacahn High School; Ivins, Utah
Third Place: Salt Lake International School of Utah; Murray, Utah

Minstrel Competition

First Place: DaVinci Academy Senior High School; Ogden, Utah
Second Place: Western Christian High School; Upland, California
Third Place: Juan Diego High School; Draper, Utah

Technical Theatre Competition

The final competition was in the technical theatre area for students who work behind the scenes creating sound, lighting, props, scenery, and costumes. In the portfolio area, students were given the chance to have their technical and/or design portfolios evaluated by professionals in technical theatre. Technical theatre students were able to compete in Tech Olympics, with winners named in rigging, props, lighting, audio, costumes, set construction, stage management, and hair and makeup. Overall school winners were also named. The best portfolio per division was also honored, and the best overall portfolio was awarded a $1,000 scholarship to SUU.

TECH OLYMPICS WINNERS

Fastest Overall Times

Rigging First Place: Brylan Madsen; Copper Hills High School; West Jordan, Utah    
Props First Place: Elizabeth Perkins; Pleasant Grove High School; Pleasant Grove, Utah
Lighting First Place: TJ Bettolo; Davis High School; Kaysville, Utah
Audio First Place: Anna Driggs; American Fork High School; American Fork, Utah
Costumes First Place: Seth Webb; Bingham High School; Bingham, Utah        
Set Construction First Place: Andrew Robinson; Pleasant Grove High School; Pleasant Grove, Utah
Stage Management First Place: Dylan Kime; Highland High School; Salt Lake City, Utah
Hair and Makeup First Place: McKenna Thompson; Mountain View High School; Orem, Utah

OVERALL SCHOOL WINNERS

First Place: Pleasant Grove High School; Pleasant Grove, Utah
Second Place: Riverton High School; Riverton, Utah
Third Place: Spanish Fork High School; Spanish Fork, Utah

PORTFOLIO WINNERS

Overall Winner: Hannah Andersen; Corner Canyon High School; Draper, Utah

Buckingham Division

Portfolio First Place: Ryleigh Thorne; Davis High School; Layton, Utah

Oxford Division

Portfolio First Place: Hannah Andersen; Corner Canyon High School; Draper, Utah

Westminster Division

Portfolio First Place: Avery Ogle; DaVinci Academy Senior High School; Ogden, Utah

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