For the first time in history, the Powell Drama Club participated in the State Drama competition. Facing tough odds and not knowing what to expect, to everyone’s surprise and excitement, they excelled and became the 3A state champions. They came into this state competition with no previous experience and only two months of preparation and practice. Mr. Hunt coached state drama in Casper previously, so he had a general idea of what to expect.

Powell never competed in State Drama before, and the reason, Mr. Hunt explained, is because most people lacked knowledge concerning the whole thing. A lot of people didn’t even know there was a state drama competition. The fact that our school doesn’t have a drama class could also be contributing factor. A lot of the schools that participated in State Drama have specific classes dedicated to them.

Mr. Hunt and Mrs. Van Epps, the two teachers in charge, came off ecstatic about the successful results of state. When asked how he felt, Mr. Hunt also came off very proud and exited, stating, “I am very pleased with our performance. The students did great. I’m also thankful to the administrators for letting us do this. It definitely paid off.”

State Drama took place in Riverton, Wyoming. Held in the Central Wyoming College, the state drama competition lasted three days, held twenty three different participating schools, most with more experience and more kids, and tested the talents and dedication of everyone involved. Mr. Hunt and Mrs. Van Epps only took 15 students. Three drama participants weren’t able to attend.

The results of state were replete with victory. The title of 3A state champions being the largest. Powell also placed very will in proscenium. The proscenium, a small one act stage play, became the highlight of the trip.

“It went pretty well. Things really fell into place.” Mr. Hunt said about the proscenium performance. “The students did very well considering they hadn’t got a chance to practice on that stage before.”

For the proscenium Powell chose to do the second act of The Diviners. The Diviners is a classic play by Jim Leonard Jr. When asked why they chose this play Mr. Hunt stated, “It has very clear objectives for the actors.” It was a good choice considering how Powell placed third out of 32 different performances.

Josey Nickels and Tracy Lewis, the winning Comedic Duo, claimed 1st place but were denied the All State award because they went over time. Micah Anderson earned All State and first place in first year lighting design and All State and second place in first year set design. Tracy Lewis also got All State in Proscenium. Josey Nickels garnered All State in group performance arts, and All State and First Place in Dramatic Monologue. Glen Prell also earned the All State in Dramatic Monologue. For first year publicity Trista Ostrum placed first.

Honorable mentions went to the following students: James Andrew, Cory Harker, Tracy Lewis, Glen Prell, Christina Reid, and Chase Werbelow. The students that participated in the GPA (group performance arts) were Kim Klettner, Josey Nickles, Christopher Padilla, Kelsey Payler, and Mallory Riley. Mallory Riley was also part of a Dramatic duo with Lisa Schiermeister. The participants of the proscenium were Tracy Lewis, Josey Nickles, Christopher Padilla, and Nick Pierson (who also got All State).

After this successful go at State, the Drama team is excited to prepare and do better next year. Mr. Hunt said some of the other teams that participated could have prepared all year for it. This makes Powell’s success all the more exiting and makes us wonder how well Powell will do next year with more time to prepare and some past experience. Mr. Vann Epps also hopes to have the Drama Club do a musical this spring. All in all, the future of the Powell High School Drama Club looks brighter than it ever has before.