CORONA DEL MAR TODAY

Congrats, CDMHS Drama!

Corona del Mar High School’s drama program has won five awards — including best musical for the controversial production of “Rent” –from the Critics and Awards Program, or “Cappies“, school officials have announced.

The other winners were Heather Shields for Comic Actress in a play; Eric Schultz for Comic Actor in a musical; Kate Alvarado, Cali Conti and Edward Wiklund for choreography; and Brian Silver for male vocalist.

Tim Dyess, Hayley Palmaer, Edward Wiklund and Ryan Willison were Commendees, picked by the director for their contributions to the drama department.

The Cappies program trains high school drama and journalism students as critics, and they attend shows at other schools, write reviews, and publish those reviews in newspapers including The Washington Post, The Kansas City Star and the Orange County Register. At the end of the year, student critics vote for awards that are presented at a formal Cappies Gala. In July and August, many of the top award honorees from around the U.S. and Canada are invited to participate in the Cappies International Theater, where they perform shows at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington, D.C.

Corona del Mar’s production of “Rent” was controversial for months leading up to its opening night, with rumors that the principal banned the play although she later said she simply wanted to review the script. Then hours before it opened, homophobic protesters from Kansas arrived with hate-spewing signs and police escorts. Students and community activists gathered in a huge counter protest; more of our coverage here.