The Kentucky Thespian Festival 2018 was this past weekend, November 9th and 10th. It was held at the lovely River-Park Center in Owensboro. This event gathers theater students and educators from across the state.

On November 9th, students from Lafayette competed in Individual events. Categories for these events include: Solo Musical Theater, Duo Musical Theater, Solo Acting, and Duo Acting.

SCAPA/Lafayette’s competition piece, Taste of Sunrise, was slated to perform on Nov. 10th, but due to unforeseen circumstances, the show performed on the 9th. Though they were thrown a scheduling curveball, the cast and crew still put on a great show. After they performed, students got to sit back relax and watch shows from schools across the state. Between shows, students completed workshops that taught skills from leadership to stage make-up. Kiara Butts, Grace Neal, Ashley Prigge, Jenna Reed, Lilly Schneider, and Victoria Steward competed in the Tech Challenge.

On November 10th, Juniors and Seniors auditioned for colleges while underclassman attended more workshops. Many students received callbacks from colleges. Seniors were also eligible to audition for the Kentucky Thespian Scholarship. Kaylee Waltermire, Grace Brown, and Ben Tonks were all called back for the scholarship. Sadly, the award was not given to a Lafayette student, but the winners were all very deserving.

Lafayette students stole the show at closing ceremonies. Kaylee Waltermine, Chris McCormick, Luke Dailey, and Harrison Hancock all won Chapter Select and performed for all attendees of the conference. Lafayette Thespian, Allison Miller, was elected as a State Thespian Officer and will help to plan next year’s festival.

Other award winners include:

Rachel Morgan- All-Star Thespian

Kiara Butts and Ashley Prigge- Fastest Drop Fold

Victoria Steward- Fastest Button Sewing

Though their troupe was only started last year, the Lafayette branch of the International Thespian Society, Troupe #8552, had a great time at Kentucky Thespian Festival 2018. They are very excited to attend next year’s festival!