24 Local Schools Vie for NSMT Spotlight Awards

Twenty-four high schools from Massachusetts and New Hampshire have been selected to participate in the 3rd annual North Shore Music Theatre Spotlight Awards. The Tony Award style program is designed to honor the accomplishments of high school students and teachers as well as encourage them to achieve the highest levels of excellence in musical theater.  This year's program will feature over 1000 students representing 24 high schools and will culminate with the 3rd annual North Shore Music Theatre Spotlight Awards ceremony on June 2, 2008 which will take place on the North Shore Music Theatre (NSMT) main stage. The Spotlight Awards are sponsored by Target.

Each participating school's production is viewed and evaluated by a panel of three judges who award points according to specific guidelines assessing both technical and performance achievement.  The evaluations are tabulated and the highest scores determine the nominees and winners in each category. The award recipients will be announced the evening of the awards ceremony.

Fifteen awards will be presented during the black-tie awards ceremony on June 2, 2008 – including Best Leading Actor/Actress, Best Supporting Actor/Actress, Best Featured Performer, Best Chorus/Ensemble, Best Direction, Best Music Direction, Best Choreography, Best Orchestra, Best Technical Crew/Execution, Best Scenic Design, Best Costume Design, Best Lighting Design, and the prestigious award for Best Overall Musical.  Additionally, musical numbers from each of the 10 productions nominated for Best Musical will be presented throughout the ceremony and the finale number will include two students from each of the 24 high schools taking part in this year's program.

Over 40 high schools throughout Massachusetts and New Hampshire applied to participate in the 2007-2008 NSMT Spotlight Awards program and through a lottery, NSMT accepted 24 of those schools to participate in this year's program. The following schools and productions will be vying for this year's awards:

Andover High School - Titanic
Beverly High School - Funny Girl
Bishop-Fenwick High School – Disney's Beauty and the Beast
Coe-Brown Northwood Academy - Disney's Beauty and the Beast
Danvers High School - All Shook Up
Dracut High School - Les Misérables School Edition
Framingham High School - The Sound of Music
Ipswich High School - Babes in Toyland
Lynnfield High School - Anything Goes Beaumont Edition
Marblehead High School - Cabaret
Masconomet High School - The Sound of Music
Natick High School - The Music Man
Newburyport High School - The Pajama Game
Pembroke High School - Once on This Island
Pentucket Regional High School - Into the Woods
Pope John XXIII High School - Seussical the Musical
Reading Memorial High School - Disney's Beauty and the Beast
Salem High School (NH) - Disney's Beauty and the Beast
Salem High School (MA) - Crazy for You
Silver Lake Regional High School - The Secret Garden
St. Thomas Aquinas High School – Anything Goes
The Governor's Academy - Chicago
Tyngsborough High School - Jesus Christ Superstar
Westford Academy – Into the Woods

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