The Denison High School theater department will participate in the 2023 Iowa High School Musical Theater Awards Showcase, presented by EMC Insurance Companies, in honor of the school’s achievements for its November production of “Beauty and the Beast.”
Produced by Des Moines Performing Arts as the culmination of a year-long education initiative, the Showcase will be held at the Des Moines Civic Center on Thursday, June 1 at 7 p.m. and will recognize a total of 94 schools from across the entire state.
Denison will be honored in a special video shown at the Showcase, in celebration of its receipt of an Outstanding Overall Technical and Creative Achievement Award — one of the program’s highest honors.
Select students (Adonay Arellano and Chloe Koch) will represent Denison by performing in a collaborative inter-school medley led by a guest Broadway music director and choreographer.
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Emily Espinoza will perform an excerpt from her award-winning role in “Beauty and the Beast” as Mrs. Potts.
Emily Espinoza and Shelby Kastner will also participate in the Triple Threat Award program with other advanced performing students. In addition to a special performance at the showcase, students will audition for theater camp scholarships and the opportunity to represent Iowa at the National High School Musical Theatre Awards in New York City this summer.
Denison will also be recognized with the following awards and honors:
Outstanding Performance in a Principal Role: Emily Espinoza and Shelby Kastner
Special Recognition in a Principal Role: Adonay Arellano, Chloe Koch and Ethan Olsen
Tickets to the Showcase, which start at $15, will go on sale on Friday, May 12, 2023 at 10 a.m. at DMPA.org, the Des Moines Civic Center Ticket Office and by phone at 515-246-2300.
The Awards Showcase will be live-streamed at IowaPBS.org as part of a collaboration with Iowa PBS. Iowa PBS will also broadcast a highlights special of the event on Friday, July 14 at 8:30 p.m. and on Sunday, July 16 at 1 p.m.
