Marble Falls theater students win honors on the big stage
Thirteen theater arts students from Marble Falls High School received national honors at the Texas Thespian Festival, which was Nov. 16-18 in Grapevine. Courtesy photo
Thirteen theater arts students at Marble Falls High School received national recognition at the 2023 Texas Thespian Festival, which was Nov. 16-18 in Grapevine.
“I think this was the hungriest group we’ve ever taken to Thespian, and while they are a young group, they were absolutely determined to have a good showing,” MFHS Theater Director Jon Clark told DailyTrib.com. “That’s something you can’t teach.”
Over 8,000 Texas high schoolers attended the annual event, which included competitions for every facet of theater production as well as workshops hosted by directors, designers, Broadway artists, and other industry professionals from across the nation.
“The festival is extremely competitive,” Clark said.
Marble Falls students honored were:
- Anthony Ruiz — Costume Design
- Cali Coker and Elliott Rossbach — Duet Acting
- Addison Doherty and Emmee Solomon — Duet Acting
- Janine Seale and Gavin Reed — Duet Acting
- Evelyn Cortez, Mallory Houck, and Malin Nelson — Group Acting
- Ella Shreve — Monologue
- Elin Gosselink — Scenic Design
- Marin Rodgers — Stage Management
A group of three judges determined scores for each individual category. Students who ranked “superior” in their category qualified for the 2024 International Thespian Festival in June in Bloomington, Indiana.
“While we have high standards and expectations for our students, they would not be reaching those expectations without the intrinsic motivation to do so,” Clark said. “I think with this group of Thespian attendees, the thing that set them apart was how badly they wanted to do well.”
Along with the 13 national qualifiers, Coker applied to be a state thespian officer at the festival. Officers are charged with planning, hosting, and managing upcoming Texas Thespians events statewide. The organization only selects 12-16 officers each year.
“Cali is an officer for our Thespian Troupe, and she is an excellent candidate for STO,” Clark said. “She is professional, intelligent, hardworking, talented, and above all else, kind. She represented our department, our school, and our community so well.”
The Marble Falls department has attended the annual festival for many years. About 10 years ago, the school began requiring theater students to compete in the festival or a non-national qualifying event.
“In 2014, we had a duet scene qualify for the first time, and in the nine years since, we have had 124 students qualify for nationals,” Clark said. “Since 2019, we have done very well, averaging about 16 national qualifiers a year.”