Honors Winners Compete in NYC At HS Musical Theatre Awards

Executive Producer Lou Spisto today announced that Globe Honors winner Katie Sapper was one of three leading actress finalists at the 2010 National High School Musical Theater Awards (NHSMTA) held on June 28 in New York City. Sapper, of the Academy of Our Lady of Peace, and Jordon Bunshaft of Coronado High School won top honors at the 2010 Globe Honors competition held on May 17, winning Leading Actress and Actor in a High School Musical and an all-expenses-paid trip to New York to participate in the national competition.

Sapper and Bunshaft, both of El Cajon, joined 42 other regional winners from high schools across the country for a rigorous week of workshops, coaching sessions, rehearsals and performances. Sapper performed her Globe Honors-winning song, "Somewhere That's Green" from the musical Little Shop of Horrors in the competition before an audience of over 1,200 theater enthusiasts. The award ceremony was hosted by Kathie Lee Gifford and Tommy Tune at the Marquis Theatre.

"We were thoroughly impressed by the talent we saw on our stage at this year's Globe Honors," said Spisto. "Our community has a lot to be proud of and we're thrilled that San Diego was so ably represented in New York for the national competition. This program is just one of the many ways we can reach into the community and engage young talent and the love of theatre."

In addition to Sapper and Bunshaft, this year's Globe Honors winners also include Daniel Myers, High Tech High International (Musical Theatre); Satya Chávez, Academy of Our Lady of Peace (Musical Theatre); Michael Silberblatt, Coronado High School (Spoken Theatre); Olivia O'Connor, Coronado High School (Spoken Theatre); and Michael Barahura, Hilltop High School (Technical Theatre).

More than 60 students from San Diego High Schools competed for the chance to win scholarships and attend NHSMTA at the 2010 Globe Honors held in May. The talented teens acted and sang their way through a series of auditions, semi finals and finals. Each winner won a scholarship to help further their training.

To compete in the Globe Honors, students had to have been currently enrolled in grades 9 - 12 in a public, private, charter, or home school in San Diego County. To audition for the Leading Actor or Actress in a High School Musical categories, students must have played the lead in a musical production at their school during the 2009 - 2010 school year. Musical Theatre, Spoken Theater and Technical Theater categories do not require school performances. Participants must also have been residents of San Diego County with a minimum 3.0 grade point average.

The 2010 Globe Honors finalists are Ashley Avan, Carlsbad High School (Leading Actress); Maddie Baldwin, Francis Parker School (Spoken Theatre); Morgan Hollingsworth, Grossmont Middle College High School (Musical Theatre); Michael Mahady, Cathedral Catholic High School (Leading Actor); Julianne Manalo, Torrey Pines High School (Musical Theatre); and Josh Pinkowski, Cathedral Catholic High School (Spoken Theatre).

The 2010 Globe Honors Semi-Finalists are Jesse Carpentier, Julian Charter School (Musical Theatre); Jess Jacobs, The Bishop's School (Spoken Theatre); Cassandra Lopez, The Preuss School (Musical Theatre); Matt Maretz, Canyon Crest Academy (Musical Theatre); Judy Mora, Grace Christian High School (Musical Theatre); Caleb Roitz, Scripps Ranch High School (Spoken Theatre); Kirstin Rower, Eastlake High School (Spoken Theatre); Jacob Sampson, SD School of Creative and Performing Arts (Spoken Theatre); Darien Sepulveda, High Tech High International (Musical Theatre); Vander Turner, Madison High School (Spoken Theatre); Helena Marie Woods, El Camino High School (Leading Actress); and Erin Wuthrich, Canyon Crest Academy (Leading Actress).

To learn more about Globe Honors, please visit www.TheOldGlobe.com/GlobeHonors, or email GlobeLearning@TheOldGlobe.org.

LOCATION: The Old Globe is located in San Diego's Balboa Park at 1363 Old Globe Way. There are numerous free parking lots available throughout the park. Valet parking is also available ($10). For additional parking information visit www.BalboaPark.org.

CALENDAR: King Lear (6/12-9/23), The Madness of George III (6/19-9/24), The Taming of the Shrew (6/16- 9/26), Robin and the 7 Hoods (7/14-8/22), The Last Romance (7/30-9/5).

The Tony Award-winning Old Globe is one of the country's leading professional regional theaters and has stood as San Diego's flagship arts institution for 75 years. Under the direction of Executive Producer Louis G. Spisto, The Old Globe produces a year-round season of 15 productions of classic, contemporary and new works on its three Balboa Park stages: the 600-seat Old Globe Theatre, the 250-seat Sheryl and Harvey White Theatre and the 612-seat outdoor Lowell Davies Festival Theatre, home of its internationally renowned Shakespeare Festival. More than 250,000 people attend Globe productions annually and participate in the theater's education and community programs. Numerous world premieres such as The Full Monty, Dirty Rotten Scoundrels, A Catered Affair, and the annual holiday musical, Dr. Seuss' How the Grinch Stole Christmas!, have been developed at The Old Globe and have gone on to enjoy highly successful runs on Broadway and at regional theaters across the country.

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