On April 26 at the Hogg Auditorium on the University of Texas campus in Austin the top eight 5-A plays competed in the UIL One-Act Play Finals for the State Championship. Out of the 260 5-A schools that began the contest in March, only eight made it to the State Finals in May. TWHS Theatre competed at State for the seventh time with senior Madeline Landers winning the top award as Best Actress. For the seventh time since 1990 when it won the State Championship with LOOK HOMEWARD, ANGEL directed by Sandra Erlandson and Connie Godwin, TWHS Theatre advanced to State, and is one of the few 5-A schools that has won the State title more than once, winning again in 2000 for THE SHADOW BOX directed by Sandra Erlandson, Carlen Gilseth, and Larry Wood. This year the cast and crew of fifteen students, who ranged in grades from 9th through 12th, performed ALL MY SONS by Arthur Miller, While they did not place, Jimmy Dolphin was named to the Honorable Mention All Star Cast as well as Landers winning Best Actress. Dolphin had won Best Actor at every contest level this year including District, Area, and Regionals as well as placing on the All-Star Cast last year at State. Landers played Beatrice this year in MUCH ADO ABOUT NOTHING and will play Sharpay in the upcoming TWHS show HIGH SCHOOL MUSICAL 2. As a private acting student of Sandra Erlandson she has won numerous scholarships to acting programs around the nation and placement at top theatre schools. She has been accepted and will attend the prestigious North Carolina School of the Arts where numerous TWHS students have attended, including a few who are now on Broadway. The 2008 UIL One-Act Play was directed by Sandra Erlandson, Carlen Gilseth and Erika Pirir, with technical direction by Tim Jackubek and assisted by Kami Jackson. Erlandson attests the advancement to State to the students’ dedication to the production, and their innate talent to portray mature, real characters. Also, the dedication and talent of the teachers, and the support from the administration of CISD and TWHS, including Don Stockton, Gregg Colschen, Bonnie Hilburn, Chris Povich, and Marguerite Weatherall, allows the play to be superior in every way. The continued support from the parents of the students also contribute to the success of the show and to the theatre program at TWHS.

The Cast and Crew of ALL MY SONS, TWHS 2008 entry in the UIL One-Act Play contest, will advance to the State Finals at the University of Texas in Austin on April 26. For two months, over 1,000 high schools in Texas have been competing in the One-Act Play contest, the largest in the nation. At State the top eight schools in each conference will compete at UT. TWHS will make its seventh appearance at the State Finals, most recently just last year with THE LITTLE FOXES, and winning the State Championship in 2000 with THE SHADOW BOX, and 1990 with LOOK HOMEWARD, ANGEL. On April 11 at Baylor University, TWHS also won the most awards of the six schools competing at the Regional level, with Jimmy Dolphin again winning top honors as Best Actor in the part of Chris Keller. Dolphin had previously won this award at every contest level this year, and last year in the role of Oscar Hubbard in THE LITTLE FOXES. Also placing were Maddie Landers, Kelley Peters and Connor McCollum to the Honorable Mention All-star Cast. Kirk Van Sickle was chosen as Best Crew member. Other members of the State bound ensemble are Zac Klammer, Erica Rascon, Craig Putman, Spencer Timm, Marisa Vasquez, Caitlin Ferraro, Sophia Chavez, Kris Jacobsen, Jessica Stanfield, and Joe Dougherty. ALL MY SONS by Arthur Miller is directed by Sandra Erlandson, Carlen Gilseth, and Erika Pirir. On a lighter note, Connor McCollum and Marisa Vasquez won the "Spike Tape Relay" pulling up the largest quantity of spike tape after the contest. This is the third year in a row that TWHS has won this fun event with McCollum participating each time.

This forty-minute show will be performed at the TWHS Theatre on April 17, 18. and 19 at 7:00 PM for the public. Tickets may be purchased at the door.
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