Penn student-actors place first in Regional competition

Penn High School students excelled in the Indiana Thespian Society Regional Competition on Saturday, Nov. 19.

 

Penn’s troupe earned first place for the play, “The Last Train”, and took best ensemble and best technical effort.

 

Jake Callender was the Student Thespian Officers' choice and Monte Teeple was awarded best actor. 

 

There are seven Indiana Thespian Society Regional  around the state from October through November. 

 

Qualifiers advance to the State Competition at Indiana-South Bend, Jan. 20, 21, and 22. 

 

“The Last Train” depicts the horrors that Jewish people experienced while being transported to the concentration camps. The play focuses a young German soldier and his inner conflict of following orders or doing the right thing when he discovers that his childhood sweetheart is on one of the trains.

 

According to Penn Theatre Department Coordinator Courtney Qualls, the "The Last Train" cast and crew started their journey in May with auditions, but the group has only been able to rehearse for a few hours a week since school started in August.

 

“I am so proud of everything they accomplished in that short amount of rehearsal time,” Qualls said of her students. “At the very beginning of this process, I charged them all with the task of finding a real-life person to provide the base of their character, so every character you see on stage is based in truth, from the smallest child to the top Nazi officers.”

 

Qualls said that the Penn students have thrived in performing a challenging play.

 

“Throughout this process students, worked together and challenged each other, and myself, to be the best we could be, and that effort came through loud and clear to the judges,” Qualls said. “I cannot wait to take the feedback we received and continue evolving as we move to state in January!”