Kennedy Speech competed at All-State on Feb. 7 at Iowa State University (ISU) in Ames. Results of who is going to All State were released on Feb. 9, and qualifying groups performed on Feb. 21 at ISU. However, despite qualifications not all teams were selected to actually perform due to time.
Musical theater made it to All-State with their performance of “Bonnie and Clyde,” which was performed by seniors Onnika Hallum and Saul Ervin.
“I feel like, at the beginning, we definitely didn’t understand or grasp the concept of the style that we were supposed to be singing,” Ervin said. “Now I feel as though we are at least 100 times better at singing in that style that we were aiming for.”
Another musical theater group who made All-State with their performance was seniors Nick Hansen and Izzy Westercamp performing “I love you, you’re perfect, now change,”. The pair qualified for All-State however, but did not perform due to lack of time.
“I’m proud of how far we’ve progressed from the beginning. It was interesting to say the least, but we grew as performers, actors, and friends,” Hansen said. “I think most of the critiques were fair. One of the critiques we got from a judge didn’t make much sense regarding the way it was done but, it was a fair critique.”
Radio Broadcasting qualified with their performance “Paris Today,” but also didn’t perform due to time. This section was performed by seniors Louise Morand, Ellison Pierce, Dallas Keller, Audrey Pruett, Jaden Reddoor, sophomore Annabelle Spangler and freshman Edison Wolterman.
“I’m proud of radio adapting every year to a new team and making it to all-state 2 years in a row,” Morand said.
Group improvisation, performed by Westercamp, Hansen and freshman Esther Davis, also performed at All-State.
“I’m proud of Esther and how she’s performed as a freshman in our improv group,” Westercamp said. “I’ve been waiting 3 years to go to All-State with this improv team, and I’m really proud of how Nick and I have gotten to know each other better and been able to read off each other better in our scenes. I just think that we’ve taken the feedback that we got from our speech coach, and I’m really proud of that and happy that my group is able to do that.”
Ensemble acting did not perform despite making it into All-State, however, their piece titled “The Backroom,” was performed by Hallum, senior Cal Loan, freshman Kole Sund and junior Maggie Reece.
“I am proud of how many people we’ve gotten to join speech, and I have no doubt that the future of our speech team is solid,” Loan said. “I am truly disappointed that not more of us got to perform at all-state. I think the people who were chosen to perform absolutely deserved it 100%.”
Choral Reading qualified for All State and will be showcasing “To Reach for the Stars,” performed by juniors Lillian Stubblefield, sophomores Rigley Ohrt, Sophia Douglas, Lindsi Martin-Trainer, Eva Torres, Reese Olade, Spangler, and freshmen RyLee Skersick and Maggie Odean.
“I’m proud of the growth that we’ve made and the emotional connection to the real-life challenger explosion,” Ohrt said. “I am grateful for the judges’ critiques. They said multiple things like, our voices blended well, and I’m proud of that.”
Readers Theater, with their performance “Cornfed and shot dead; scandals and sinners in Iowa history,” was another group to qualify, with performers Stubblefield, Douglas, Reece, juniors Sepha Donfack, Jenevieve McLaughlin and sophomores Jakayla Rempt and Scarlett Bunnell. Despite making it to All-State, this group did not perform.
“I was proud of how we were able to adapt when a member was unable to perform anymore,” Stubblefield said. “I was very appreciative of the judges’ feedback and agreed with their critique of out pacing and character development.”
