Theater Students Excel at Kentucky Thespians Festival

Three of our high schools participated in the 2023 Kentucky Thespian Festival in Owensboro in early November. This annual three-day event features workshops and performances, auditions for colleges, and competition in the Thespy awards and Tech Challenge. Lafayette and Bryan Station students competed while the Douglass crew took in some workshops and networked with state and regional colleges. All the students did a tremendous job representing Fayette County Public Schools!

Lafayette’s troupe performed their production of “Cardboard Stories: Some Assembly Required” and received two superior ratings and one perfect score from the judges. The following also received superior ratings.

Musical Theatre Solo:

• Katie Bowden, Colin Clevenger, Sarah Collins, Silas Cornette, Parker Olukalns, Lily Brooke Pearson, and Abigayle Stokes (all from Lafayette)

Musical Theatre Duet:

• Silas Cornette and Brody Mancuso, Lafayette
• Clementine Connell and Ellie Naish, Lafayette
• Vykai Forrester and Ethan Thomas, Bryan Station
• Gus Ringenberger and Parker Olukalns, Lafayette

Solo Acting:

• Hannah Clark, Bryan Station
• Sarah Collins, Lafayette
• Lindsey Midkiff, Bryan Station
• Ayla Nelson, Lafayette
• Eli Robinson, Bryan Station
• Abigayle Stokes, Lafayette

Duet Acting:

• Taylor Hatfield and Ethan Thomas, Bryan Station
• Millie Matthews and Sally Thalacker, Lafayette

Sound Design:

• Lily Miracle, Bryan Station

Costume Design:

• Bird Gohde, Bryan Station

These students were selected to present at the closing ceremony’s Superior Rankings Showcase:

• Gabriella Cortes, Solo Acting, Lafayette
• Bird Ghode, Costume Design, Bryan Station
• Millie Matthews and Sally Thalacker, Duet Acting, Lafayette
• Lily Miracle, Sound Design, Bryan Station
• Abigayle Stokes, Solo Acting, Lafayette

Three were named All-Star Thespians:

• Rachel Bowman, Frederick Douglass
• Taylor Hatfield, Bryan Station
• Abigayle Stokes, Lafayette

Tech Challenge Overall Winner:

• Bryan Station with Lily Miracle, Zahid Perez Ruiz, Bird Gohde, Lindsey Midkiff and Liv Caudill

Individual Tech Results

• Costume Quick Change: 1st place - Bird Gohde and Lindsey Midkiff, Bryan Station
• Fastest Sewing Machine Threading: 1st place - Ela Congleton, Lafayette
• Knot Tying: 1st place - Zahid Perez Ruiz, Bryan Station
• Light Hang and Focus: 1st place - Liv Caudill, Bryan Station; 2nd - Delaney Walton, Lafayette

During the festival, several students also auditioned for scholarships, and these received one or more offers:

• Hadley Collins, Lafayette
• Ela Congleton, Lafayette
• Gabriella Cortes, Lafayette
• Taylor Hatfield, Bryan Station
• Vykai Forrester, Bryan Station

The previous weekend, Lafayette’s troupe won the central region’s Outstanding Production award presented by the Kentucky Theatre Association’s High School Festival, and Abigayle Stokes was picked for the region’s all-star cast. Lafayette qualified for this organization’s state competition.