Since early January, the one-act play company of Wit by Margret Edson has prepared for the UIL One-Act Play Contest. After multiple stages of competition and a trip to Round Rock, Wit competed at the state level of the contest on Wednesday, April 25, and took the title of third place in the 6A district in the state of Texas – the first time that the Timber Creek one-act play has competed at state UIL.
The final showing of the award winning one-act play Wit will be held on Monday, April 30 at 8 p.m. in the Fine Arts Center. There will be no cost for admission and donations for the American Cancer Society will be accepted at the door.
Additionally, finalists in the State UIL Theatrical Design Competition joined the company for the trip to Round Rock. Sophomore, Sophia Rosenthal, received the award for sixth place in Hair and Make-up Design in Division II, which comprises of districts 5A and 6A. The other finalists that went to compete are Jack Gray for Set Design, Sydney Khamphouseng for Costume Design, and Harper Smith for Hair and Make-up Design.
“It was amazing to get to accompany the one-act in their success and to meet some wonderfully talented artists in the theater design world,” said Rosenthal. “[It was] an awesome week with awesome people overall.”
To further Timber Creek’s accomplishments at the State UIL Competition, students from the company of Wit received individual recognition and awards. The students are:
Nathaniel Hicks- Honorable Mention All-Star Cast
Megan McCormack- All-Star Cast
Raegan White- Outstanding Technician
Around 9:30 a.m. on Tuesday, April 24, students representing a variety of different clubs and organizations, as well as parents, assembled to send off the students participating in the State UIL Competition. Several carried signs with words of encouragement or jokes on them to wish the company luck. Parents even put up signs along Timberland Blvd that company members could see from the bus as they started their trek to Round Rock.
“I expected the sendoff to be just our parents, but I was wrong,” cast member Hailey Anders said. “When we stepped into the hall there were cheerleaders, Sky Dancers, the drum line, friends from other classes, even my Spanish teacher. It was amazing to see all the support from family and friends.”
With matching pillows and blankets in hand, the company traveled alongside the state qualifiers for UIL Theatrical Design to Round Rock High School, ready to compete at 10 p.m. the next day. According to cast member, Sydnee Jones, the team took the liberty to relax and enjoy each other’s company on the bus ride.
“On the bus, we really just slept and hung out,” Jones said. “It brought everyone closer.”
In charge of directing the one-act play are theatre directors Lance Morse and Blake Wilson. Members of the company like Anders say that the directors really put time and effort into the show, and would make sure that everything on stage was presented at its best.
“I really admire both directors for taking the time to make sure this show looked amazing,” Anders said.
Nerves were a constant across the company in the days leading up to the competition; however, the students were excited to make Timber Creek history as the first one-act play in the school’s records to advance to the state contest.
“Specifically on rehearsals, we would work scenes, run the show, or change things here and there as we advanced [through the competition], but we never tried to over do it,” Anders explained. “If the cast was tired or anxious, we would run the show with a twist. On the day of our district competition, we performed Wit as a musical.”
Anders and Jones alike expressed that being a part of the show was a great experience, and that the company was much more than a group of actors and technicians. They were a family.
“I thought that [the state competition] would’ve been a lot more uptight like the previous competitions, but everyone was having fun,” said Jones. “I enjoyed that it was more laid back. All in all, it was just kids doing what they love: theater.”
More pictures from the one-act play company’s journey to the State UIL One-Act Play Contest, as well as the Theatrical Design Contest can be found on Twitter @TCHSTBoosters, @TimberCallBoard and @tchsfalconwit.
Below is the list of the company of Wit by Margret Edson.
- Stage Manager – Raegan White
- Tech – Sarah Scherger, Jack Gray, McKinlee Shaw, Brandon Hearell
- Vivian Bearing, Ph.D. – Megan McCormack
- Susie Monahan, R.N., B.S.N. – Hailey Anders
- Jason Posner, M.D. – Nathaniel Hicks
- Harvey Kelekian, M.D. – Aaron Frye
- E.M. Ashford, Ph.D. – Olivia Smith
- Mr. Bearing/Code Head – Jesse Champion
- Stundet 1/Code 3 – Braeden De La Garza
- Code 1 – Kaleigh Smith
- Tech 1/Fellow 2 – Trevor Shoemaker
- Tech 3/Code 2 – Zoey Taslimi
- Fellow 3 – Bailey Collier
- Fellow 1/Code 4 – Rachel Scherer
- Student 2 – Sydnee Jones
- Tech 2 – Maddie Ott
- Fellow 4 – Elizabeth Carlson
- Alternate – Karen Sager, Floriana Azemi, Amanda Lastorino, Elizabeth Heffron