After a year of dedicated preparation, Westmont High's thespian troupe 2904 won several awards at the California State Thespian Festival, a three-day event that annually showcases the best in high school theatre from throughout the state.
Among the winners was junior Rebecca Uddin, who took took home first place in the short film competition for her original film "Medea's Revenge."
The California State Thespian Festival features numerous performances presented by high school students, and many Westmont students received a superior rating for their showcase entries including: senior Ryan Mohs’s hilarious solo “Way Ahead of My Time,” sophomore Sarah Younan and junior Cat Heneghan's slam poetry piece “What Guys Look for in Girls,” and senior Elizabeth Mercado et al's original play “Tin Foil Tim” written by junior Austin Nipper.
Junior Kendra Lincoln and sophomore Mitchell Mosley (duet musical), seniors Ally McGreevy (monolgue) and Mohs (solo musical), and Nipper and sophomore Trinity Phan-Low (duet scene) received recognition through individual event call backs.
Students can also participate in a variety of workshops led by theatre professionals, watch individual performance and tech events, audition for scholarships, or compete in dozens of events with more than 1,600 theatre students from across the state.
Of the 725 students performing monologues, junior Johannes de Quant was selected as the second best monologue performer in the state of California.
De Quant and seniors McGreevy and Anna Benedict also took part in four main stage shows that were produced over the course of 24 hours, one of which featured senior Ella Tarczy as an assistant director for the California playwright project honoring the work of Jonathan Rand.
Westmont theatre technicians also shined this year. Freshmen Amira Allawi and Kyle Friedman were elevated to the All-State media crew, while freshmen Eddie Gemme and Erick Vazquez were selected as All-State sound technicians.
Meanwhile, sophomore Grace Landers worked with the All-State house staff, and classmate Natalie Rutz operated the spotlight for one of the All Festival Events.