Three additional schools* have been invited to perform on the main stage at the nation's leading high school theatre festival. They join eight schools announced previously this year. (Complete list of schools and shows to-date follows.)
The International Thespian Festival, (ITF) produced by the Educational Theatre Association (EdTA), celebrates student achievement in the performing arts. The 56th event, which this year takes place June 24-29, brings together more than 4,000 high school drama students and their teachers for a weeklong immersion in workshops; interaction with colleges, industry leaders, and Broadway professionals; and opportunities to be inspired by the best high school theatre in the nation.
The highly coveted invitation signals achievement of superior work in theatre according to EdTA's Events Director Nancy Brown. "It is a real honor," she explains, "because we send screening teams out all across the U.S. and Canada during the school year and only 11 schools will be selected to present their shows on the main stage. These Thespian troupes have earned a slot among those honored few."
Noteworthy this year is the selection of the Jemicy School, a private school that serves students with dyslexia and other language-based learning differences, home of International Thespian Troupe 8269, from Owings Mill, Md. In 2017 the school earned a Send a Troupe to Festival grant, which is awarded only to schools that have never before participated in International Thespian Festival. Now they are returning based on the strength of their performance.
Bright Star*
Director: Anthony Cimino-Johnson
Rock Ridge Performing Arts, Troupe 8104
Ashburn, Va.
Xanadu*
Director: Brian Quillin
Arab High School, Troupe 7023
Arab, Ala.
She Kills Monsters*
Director: Courtney LaChance-Denton
St. Charles High School, Troupe 1171
St. Charles, Mo.
Shakespeare In Love
Director: Heather Biddle
J.J. Pearce High School, Troupe 6896
Richardson, Texas
26 Pebbles
Director: Mark Stutz
Parkland High School, Troupe 439
Allentown, Pa.
Bring It On
Director: Ed Shafer
Kansas All State
Olathe, Ks.
Peter and the Starcatcher
Director: Sean Elias
Jemicy School, Troupe 8269
Owings Mills, Md.
A Midsummer Night's Dream
Director: Andrea Roney & Debra Buckner
North Penn High School, Troupe 5464
Lansdale, Pa.
Hamlet
Director: Barbara Hilt
Garden City High School, Troupe 2846
Garden City, Ks.
Noises Off
Director: Greg McGlynn
McPherson High School, Troupe 3796
McPherson, Ks.
Be More Chill
Director: Patrick Avery
South Eugene High School, Troupe 750
Eugene Or.
The Educational Theatre Association is an international association with more than 135,000 active members. EdTA's mission is shaping lives through theatre education: honoring student achievement in theatre; supporting teachers by providing professional development, resources, and recognition; and influencing public opinion that theatre education is essential and builds life skills. EdTA is the home of the International Thespian Society, an honorary organization established at nearly 5,000 schools, that has inducted more than 2.3 million theatre students since its founding in 1929. EdTA also produces the International Thespian Festival and publishes Dramatics magazine in print and online for high school theatre students, and Teaching Theatre, a journal for theatre education professionals. The Educational Theatre Foundation is the philanthropic arm of EdTA.
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