Eight area schools take part in this year’s High School Musical Theatre Awards

The High School Musical Theatre Awards take place at 7:00 p.m. on Thursday, May 4 at the Barbara B Mann Performing Art Hall at FSW. Started in 2008 by Barbara Mann GM Scott Saxson, the High School Musical Theatre Awards celebrate local high school actors, orchestras, their musical productions and the hard work those students do every year.

Students spend months working on their productions, rehearsing songs and dance steps, designing and painting the sets, sewing the costumes and doing everything else it takes to put on a show. Most schools start working on their productions in the fall and rehearse all year until they present their shows in March or April – including after school and weekends. The High School Musical Theatre Awards celebrate their hard work and achievements.

Eight area schools are taking part in the Awards this year, which are modeled after the Tony Awards. Winners are announced for each category interspersed with lively production numbers from the shows nominated for Best Musical and finalists for Best Actor and Best Actress.

Bishop Verot High School will be performing “Brotherhood of Man” and “All Star Number” from How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying! Under the direction of Theater Director/Teacher Lisa Clark, Bishop Verot Theater performs a variety of straight plays and musicals that feature in excess of 50 students. Past productions have included The Addams Family Musical, Beauty and the Beast and Grease: The School Version. Bishop Verot is a member of the SWFL Theatrical Society, and Bishop Verot High School Thespian Troupe 6159 is a part of the International Thespian Society, an organization that recognizes students for their exceptional participation in theater.

Under the direction of Sean Bradley, Bonita Springs High School is performing scenes from their production of Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat. 

The Chorus and Musical Theater Program at Bonita Spring’s High School encourages self-expression, confidence and life-long engagement with the arts. Students involved in chorus and musical theater classes learn to develop concentration, confidence, and teamwork.

Canterbury School will feature Elf the Musical at this year’s HSMTA. Canterbury School’s theatre program provides a comprehensive education in the art of performing, the history of the stage, and technical aspects of theatre. Under the guidance and direction of Catherine Truesdale, Aaron Jackson and Michael Lynch, Canterbury thespians showcase their abilities at several events throughout the year, which are highly anticipated by students, faculty and members of the Southwest Florida community.

Cypress Lake High School will perform scenes from Big Fish, a play about the strained relationship between a father (played by Declan Ireland) and his son (Brandon Lee), with their wife/mother (played by Kristen Noble) thrust into the unwelcome position of mediator. The theatre program at Cypress Lakes reflects the formidable skills and considerable experience of Theatre Director/Teacher Carmen Crussard, who previously directed the Alliance Youth Theatre.

Ida Baker High School brings to the Barbara B. Mann a mash-up of scenes from their production of Little Shop of Horrors. Under the guidance of Theatre Director Sarah Jones, the Ida S. Baker High School offers a medley of courses in which students can study and learn various elements of theater, musical theater and technical theater throughout all four years of high school.

Island Coast High School will perform numbers from Matilda, a musical centered around a courageous and clever little girl with astonishing wit, intelligence, and psychokinetic powers. Rachel Davis directs.

Under the director of Miguel Cintron, Lehigh Senior High School will feature numbers from Footloose.

North Fort Myers High School brings Anything Goes to the High School Musical Theatre Awards. Under the direction of Janelle Laux, North Fort Myers High theater students receive intensive training in acting, directing, design, and technical theatre. The course of study includes opportunities in acting, voice, and diction, mime and movement, improvisation, directing and playwriting, state make-up, theatre technology, theatre history, vocal techniques, dance, musical theatre, and other classes.

The Awards are open to the public. Tickets are just $10 and can be purchased here.

May 2, 2023.