By Timothy Leoncio
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On Jan. 22, students had a chance to try their hand at the thespian arts for the 9th annual MHS Shakespeare Competition, sponsored by the Hawaii branch of the English-Speaking Union of the United States. More than a dozen competitors had to recite a 15 to 20-line monologue in front of an audience and a panel of judges, but the prize went to Intermediate Acting student Junior Angelina Ervin, who is moving on to the state competition.
“I really grew up from my monologue. I didn’t expect as many people, I was a little nervous,” said Ervin of her experience in the competition, continuing, “But it was fun. After everyone went, we would just like cheer on everyone and that was nice.” Ervin will move on to the state competition on Feb. 23 at the Orvus Center at the University of Hawaii and has a chance at competing in the 2013 Nationals in New York.
Out of the thirteen competitors, Ervin came in first place with her performance as Rosalind from “As You Like It”, while Sophomore Nicholas Howe and Senior Maricella Gutierrez came in second and third, respectively. “I didn’t expect (to place) at all because I did think that there were a lot of people who were so good,” said Howe, continuing, “The judges saw specific things in certain people, and I feel honored that they saw something in me that was worthy of second place.” Gutierrez added, “Shakespeare is not an easy thing to master. I’m proud of my competitors and myself, this year has been the best competition I’ve been to.”
Most of the students had spent a great deal of time preparing for the contest and practicing their monologue. “(We) started before Christmas break actually. We started picking our monologues and started working with them, and then we started work-shopping them in class. It has probably been about one or two months,” stated Howe. This competition also included an emphasis on practicing: reciting in front of peers who gave constructive criticism and memorizing lines.
Although Fine Arts teacher Jamie Stroud made it a requirement for her Intermediate Acting class students to compete, other students from different English classes volunteered to participate as well. “They have to have opportunities to do things like this,” said Stroud, “I think that they have a better understanding of Shakespeare from all that we did.” Stroud also helped guide her students in choosing a monologue and understanding the background history of theater. “We really went into what Shakespeare meant in his works, and she helped us go through our monologues and really go through what our character is feeling and thinking and even smelling,” explained Gutierrez, “I took all of that with me into this year’s competition.”
The effort put into the contest paid off as all of the students came away with a greater understanding of Shakespearean literature. “I was immensely proud of them,” said Stroud, continuing, “I thought they all did very well. I was impressed with their work ethic.”
The students who participated in the competition continue to carry on that selfsame work ethic not only on stage, but also in the grander theater of life.
