On Monday, May 19, West High celebrated its annual Drama Awards. This award ceremony commemorates Theatre West participants for putting on outstanding performances, specifically highlighting students who have gone above and beyond for the production and the community around them. During the ceremony, the new Drama Board is announced, consisting of tech heads, the stage manager, the drama president and all other board members. 

This year, Theatre West said goodbye to Becky Dagle, the costume director who was a core member of the theatre department. She designed costumes for hundreds of actors and actresses, made outfits from curtains and tablecloths and brought joy to all of Theatre West. 

Many awards are given during the Drama Awards, including a pin for completing four shows, a varsity letter which then makes you eligible to wear a cord at graduation for completing six shows and many other awards for the actors and technicians. 

Listed below are the awards presented and the students who received them: 

Most innovative: Emily Phillips

Most creative: Olivia Anderson

Grin and do it: Josie Schwartz

Most congenial: Nicholas Davis and Maile Kruse

Superhero award: Aseel Matar

Best newcomers to the stage: Vin Wardi and Henry Harris

Best newcomers behind the scenes: Sariah Stutzman and Kate Kacmarynski

Above and beyond award: Genna Ray

Dedication award: Flora Zhu

Dependability award: Anna Greenlee and Evelyn Kraber

Leadership award: Maile Kruse

Outstanding tech crew chief: Meila Miller-Jacobs and Eva Esch

Outstanding orchestra members: Ian Kraske, Sabrina Du and Emery Crawford

Outstanding ensemble member: Ania Willis (“The Sound of Music”), Haley DeMeulenaere (“Chicago”) and Franny Jordan (“Chicago”)

Outstanding dancer: Carter Wagner and Clara Visser

Outstanding vocalist: Addison Cribbs

Outstanding performance in a principal role: Maile Kruse (“The Sound of Music”), Lovella Varner (“The Sound of Music”), Claire Lawler (“The Sound of Music”), Clara Visser (“The Sound of Music”), Rana Saba (“Chicago”) and Grace Bartlett (“Chicago”)

Best supporting actor in a musical: Eli Asper (“Chicago”) and Luke Reimer (“The Sound of Music”)

Best supporting actress in a musical: Ella Vakiner (“Chicago”) and Grace Bartlett (“The Sound of Music”)

Best actor in a musical: Luke Reimer (“Chicago”) and Oliver Miller (“The Sound of Music”)

Best actress in a musical: Mary Danielle Gross  (“Chicago”) and Rana Saba  (“The Sound of Music”)

Best thespian: Mary Danielle Gross and Michael Shonrock

Theatre West announced it’s shows for the 2025-26 season Tuesday morning.

The fall production will be “Peter and the Starcatcher,” a play featuring two ships on a mission to deliver a trunk of treasure to the kingdom of Rundoon. One ship, The Wasp, carries Lord Aster, Lieutenant Greggors, and a squadron of British Navy seamen. The other ship, The Neverland, carries the captain, Bill Slank, Lord Aster’s daughter Molly, her nanny, and three orphan boys. Each ship has a trunk on it, but only one holds the real treasure. It’s up to Molly and one of the orphan boys, only known as Boy, to save the treasure from pirate hands. 

The spring production will be “A Gentleman’s Guide to Love and Murder.” This musical comedy centers on Monty Navarro, a penniless clerk who finds out after his mother’s death that he is the ninth in line to inherit the earldom of Highhurst, a title giving both territory and nobility. The earldom of Highhurst is controlled by the wealthy banking family, D’Ysquiths, who don’t believe Monty’s claim of being a relative. Strange things start happening to the eight D’Ysquiths ahead of Monty while the man himself is off trying to find love.