St. John Paul II Catholic High School takes best in show at state theater competition

HUNTSVILLE – St. John Paul II Catholic High School (JPII) Theatre students recently competed at the State Walter F. Trumbauer Theatre Festival at Troy University. For the first time in school history, the Theatre Department won the coveted “Best in Show” award with their performance of Alan Haehnal’s “In A Strange Land.”

In this play, JPII thespian students embody absurd characters in the midst of the 8th War of the Singleterry Alliance. The entire performance of “In a Strange Land” is pantomimed, a theatre practice in which no props are used, and actors must use their imagination, physicality, and facial expression to relay what they’re doing.

Protagonist Tammy, played by JPII senior Olivia “Libby” Walker, was the audience’s guide to understanding what is real or not in the bizarre war comedy. Libby and her castmate, sophomore Sarah Brolliar, both received recognition, winning All-Star Cast Awards. The group performance was directed by JPII alumni, former thespian, and current Alumni/Social Media Coordinator, Daniel Wesolowski.

In the Individual Events, JPII had 20 students perform and walked away with a historic 13 Superior Ratings and 7 Excellent Ratings. Among the Superior Ratings, three JPII students placed in the top three in state for their respective events: freshman Maria “Mia” Craig, placed 3rd in the Novice Playwriting Category for her original play “Forever Standing;” junior KT Bechen, placed 1st in the Novice Acting Classical Comedic (solo) category, and sophomore Gianna Blanco, placed 3rd in the same category for their individual performances from “As You Like It” by William Shakespeare.

A record for JPII with the most awards won by the school at the State Trumbauer Festival. Mari Adams, JPII’s

Theatre teacher and Fine Arts Department Chair, commented on her student’s success at State Trumbauer saying, “The extreme dedication and time these students put into learning and memorizing their pieces, whether a monologue or musical number, and building their technical presentations is evident by their high scores at the state level! Approximately 1,500 students from across Alabama competed, so for three students to place is thrilling!” Wesolowski, after hearing the results, raved about the students saying, “These kids have shown immense growth over the course of our rehearsals. This is not an easy show with the entirety of it being performed with pantomiming. This is an exciting time for the Theatre department and we look forward to seeing the students thrive in our future endeavors!”