Wenham's Academy at Penguin Hall Advances In Drama Festival

WENHAM, MA — The Academy at Penguin Hall’s Theater Department has advanced to the semi-finals round of the Massachusetts Educational Theater Guild’s High School Drama Festival for their mystical performance from Lois Lowry’s “Gossamer,” directed by APH Theater Teacher Kevin Crowley.

In addition to moving on to Drama Festival semi-finals later this month, four talented APH students also earned the following awards during the preliminary round for their work in the performance: Raya Young, ’23 for Acting, Abby Prince, ’21, for Sound Design, and Abby Bettencourt,’20 and Margo Tsouvalas, ’22 for Make-up and Costume.

“I have never been prouder of a group of students. Their steadfast dedication and boundless creativity bringing the dream world of Lois Lowry’s Gossamer to life is a thrill to witness. APH's advancement to the semi-final round of METG's High School Drama Festival is a true testament to the tremendous talent and hard work that went into this production on the parts of all involved. All company members are eagerly preparing for the semi-final round of competition, which takes place on Saturday, March 14th at Danvers High School. We can't wait to share our award-winning production with even more communities," said Kevin Crowley, APH Theater Teacher Kevin Crowley.

According to one of the Drama Fest judges, APH’s advancement to the semi-final round was well-deserved, not only because of the hard work the entire cast and crew put into the performance, but their dedication to the characters and storyline as well.

“As the play unfolds, we begin to get a sense of where we are and it’s a lovely place that seems peaceful. We then are almost immediately thrust into another world, a world we are more familiar with. The world is full of anxiety, fear, loss and the lives that exist as a result of those elements. Both of these worlds are very well established by the strong character work we saw today on stage.”

The APH Theater Program’s next performance of Gossamer for the METG High School Drama Festival begins at 3:30 p.m. on Saturday, March 14 at Danvers High School in Danvers, Mass.

The APH Theater Department is also offering a free performance of Gossamer to the public at the Larcom Theater in Beverly, Massachusetts. Showtimes are Friday, March 6 at 7 p.m., and again on Sunday, March 8 at 6 p.m.