The Porter Ridge Castaways are celebrating their recognition at the 2021 NCTC High School Play Festival. The program, led by Drama teacher Todd Ford, presented I Don’t Want to Talk About It at the Festival, and brought home the following awards:
- Excellence in Choral Execution
- Excellence in Ensemble Acting
- Excellence in Acting - Chevonne Van Heerden
This was quite an achievement for Theatre III & IV who made up the cast of this moving performance. Due to COVID-19, this is the first year that any of the current Theatre III & IV students participated in NCTC. Participating schools traveled to their regional festival sites with theatrical sets, costumes and props. Each school was tasked with fitting these three elements into a 10’x10’ space in the backstage area of each competition venue. When their time came, each school had 45 minutes to set up, perform the play, and clear the stage. If a school goes over their time limit, they are automatically disqualified. The PRHS production of I Don’t Want To Talk About It ran at roughly 40 minutes, which meant the stakes and stress levels were high for these first time competitors. Despite this, they delivered- and they delivered well.
On top of the new experience of competition performance, the group of Theatre III & IV students got to experience several other things as well. Chevonne Van Heerden had this to say about her NCTC experience:
“Being at NCTC was one of the best opportunities I’ve gotten. I had the opportunity to perform with a wonderful cast and we got to see a lot of other schools perform. I loved being in an environment where everyone is comfortable with and supporting each other. Receiving an award for Excellence in Acting had me a little confused at first, I couldn’t have done it without such a wonderful and hardworking cast by my side.”
I Don’t Want To Talk About It is only one of many performances the Castaways will have this year. There are several shows still to come! A list below details the rest of the theatre season, including audition info for the spring musical.
PRHS Castaways 2021-2022 Season
- Legally Blonde the Musical
- Auditions are December 1st & 2nd. Any student may audition. Follow @prhs_castaways for more information or email todd.ford@ucps.k12.nc.us and/or dakota.drake@ucps.k12.nc.us
- The Works Of Shel Silverstein - December 10th
- Dial M for Murder - January 21st & 22nd
- Theatre Showcase II - Second semester
- Theatre II Piece (TBD) - Second semester
Written by Molly Ansel-12th grade student
