Hennepin Theatre Trust Announces 56 Schools Participating in the 2012-13 SpotLight Musical Theatre Program

Hennepin Theatre Trust today announced that 56 schools will participate in the 2012-13 SpotLight Musical Theatre Program, including five new schools and nine from greater Minnesota. Now in its eighth successful year, SpotLight is the Trust's flagship education initiative which honors, supports, provides training and advocates for Minnesota high school musical theatre students and programs. A full list of participants is included at the end of this press release. Fall and spring 2012-13 performance schedules for SpotLight high school musicals are available by request and online at HennepinTheatreTrust.org.

The SpotLight Musical Theatre Program celebrates high school musicals and students by recognizing extraordinary achievements and helping to develop young talent in Minnesota's high school musical theatre programs. Statewide, SpotLight musicals are made possible by the collaboration of almost 5,000 students and are annually seen by an estimated 105,000 audience members. This year, highlights include Washburn High School presenting the musical My Feet is Tired, But My Soul is Rested, originally produced at Youth Performance Company in Minneapolis.

Schools and participating students will be honored at SpotLight's culminating event, the eighth annual SpotLight Showcase, held at 7 p.m., Monday, June 3, 2013 at the Orpheum Theatre. This gala evening recognizes high school musical theatre accomplishments by featuring dynamic student performances mixed with award presentations. Last year's event sold out and featured more than 800 Minnesota students performing on the Orpheum stage.

Hennepin Theatre Trust, owner of the historic Orpheum, State, Pantages and New Century Theatres, is an independent, non-profit organization dedicated to arts-inspired community cultural development. The Trust established the SpotLight Musical Theatre Program after recognizing that none existed in Minnesota to honor excellence in high school musical theatre. The Trust supports participating schools by providing high-quality learning, performing and creative experiences for students to develop and empower the next generation of innovative arts leaders.

SpotLight's benefits include the opportunity to work with local and National Theatre educators and musical theatre professionals who offer training, insight through critical feedback and on-site school workshops. A group of evaluators is retained by the Trust to assess each production with constructive written commentary and nominate honorees. Categories include outstanding performance in leading, supporting and featured roles, outstanding performance by a chorus, dance ensemble and student orchestra, outstanding overall performance of a musical and outstanding overall production of a musical. Shows are not compared or ranked against each other, so categories may have multiple honorees. Schools annually apply to participate and pay a nominal administration fee. SpotLight advocates for the importance of high school musical theatre education to support the statewide community of theatre artists, teachers and families who participate in this art form.

School Participants in the 2012-13 SpotLight Program
Andover High School: TBA
Anoka High School: Legally Blonde: The Musical and All Shook Up
Bemidji High School: Into the Woods
Benilde-St. Margaret's (St. Louis Park): Thoroughly Modern Millie
Blaine High School: Hello, Dolly!
Cambridge-Isanti High School: Seussical: The Musical
Centennial High School (Circle Pines): Annie
Chanhassen High School: The Boy Friend
Chaska High School: 9 to 5: The Musical
Chisago Lakes High School: The Sound of Music
Columbia Heights High School: TBA
Concordia Academy (Roseville): Disney's Beauty & the Beast
Cretin-Derham Hall (Saint Paul): Disney's Beauty & the Beast
DeLaSalle High School (Minneapolis): TBA
Eagan High School: TBA
East Ridge High School (Woodbury): White Christmas
Eastview High School (Apple Valley): Good News!
Edina High School: Bye Bye Birdie! and TBA
FAIR Downtown School (Minneapolis): TBA
Fridley Senior High School: Joseph & the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat
Glencoe-Silver Lake High School: Annie
Hill-Murray School (Maplewood): Irving Berlin's White Christmas and TBA
Hinckley-Finlayson High School: Anastasia
Irondale High School (New Brighton): Grease
Kennedy High School (Bloomington): Hairspray
La Crescent High School: Little Shop of Horrors
Lakeville North High School: Roald Dahl's Willy Wonka
Lakeville South High School: TBA
Main Street School of Performing Arts (Hopkins): Roald Dahl's Willy Wonka
Maple Grove Senior High School: Urinetown: The Musical
Minnehaha Academy (Minneapolis): Big River
Minnetonka High School: The Secret Garden and Elton John and Tim Rice's Aida
Monticello High School: A Christmas Carol Musical
Moorhead High School: 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee
Mound Westonka High School: My Fair Lady
New Life Academy (Woodbury): Hello, Dolly!
North High School (North St. Paul): Hello, Dolly!
Park High School (Cottage Grove): Once Upon a Mattress
Richfield Senior High School: TBA
Rogers High School: You're A Good Man Charlie Brown
Roseville Area High School: Guys & Dolls
Shakopee High School: Disney's Beauty & the Beast
Southwest High School (Minneapolis):The Who's Tommy
South St. Paul Secondary School: Les Miserables (School Edition)
St. Francis High School: Grease
St. Louis Park High School: All Shook Up
Saint Paul Conservatory for Performing Artists: Chicago
Tartan Senior High School (Oakdale): Peter Pan
The Blake School (Minneapolis): Guys and Dolls
Thomas Jefferson High School (Bloomington): Disney's Beauty & the Beast
Totino-Grace High School (Fridley): Godspell
Washburn High School (Minneapolis): My Feet is Tired, But My Soul is Rested and Urinetown
Wayzata High School: The Sound of Music
White Bear Lake Area High School: Anything Goes
Winona Senior High School: Alice in Wonderland
Zimmerman High School: Hello, Dolly!

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