MVHS Theater Troupe Wins CETA Award for 3rd Year in a Row for 'The Crucible'
The excited, if not somewhat tired, cast of The Crucible performed scenes from the fall show on stage at this year's Festival of Scenes after taking third place during the California Educational Theater Association (CETA) competition.
The CETA festival is a program that showcases the performances of the winning high school's who participate in this annual competition. The festival, which has taken place in Fullerton for the past several years, was held in Rancho Cucamonga this year, hosting events and awards ceremonies for the eight schools from different regions that participated.
The MVHS Theater Troupe has a history of wining awards at CETA. They placed 7th their first year in the competition for their performance of Diary of Anne Frank. The third year they won 1st place for Triangle Factory Fire Project, and were invited to perform the entirety of that production on stage at the festival.
During adjudication, judges pay attention to details such as staging, light design, scene design, tech elements, as well as directing and acting. Multiple judges adjudicate, attending different shows on different nights between the show's opening through closing.
Carol Jones, drama teacher, had high hopes for her actors, saying that it, “needs to be like a chamber orchestra.” Jones praised her actors for their, “attention to detail” and “seriousness of purpose” during their performance over that weekend.
Even after a long winter break, these actors pushed through and were able to perform a ten minute excerpt for the festival of scenes, ultimately, bringing home two additional awards during the festival; Audience Favorite and Best Ensemble.
The festival took place over a course of three days and two nights. Actors also participated in workshops and got to enjoy performances by other schools while they were there.