Sophomore Polly Bryant placed first in solo acting and earned an encore, command performance for the Haines High School Drama, Debate and Forensics team at a Jan. 13-14 Ketchikan meet.
Bryant said she portrays “a ridiculous character,” and assistant coach Tim Shields said the results are “hilarious.”
“It’s about a Southern belle deciding that she’s going to ask her boyfriend to marry her, rather than the other way around,” Shields said. “She gets tired of waiting for her boyfriend to pop the question.”
The dozen Haines participants in Ketchikan had several other impressive performances, including a second place from sophomore Isobel Smith and junior Margarette Jones for their duo interpretation of the “Calvin and Hobbes” comic strip.
Junior Royal Henderson was third in extemporaneous speaking, where students have 30 minutes to prepare a speech on a political topic.
Henderson also was part of a fourth-place readers theater team with twin brother Patrick Henderson, Smith, sophomore Eli White and freshman Jennie Humphrey. They presented a Monty Python piece.
The debate team of White and Patrick Henderson tallied a 4-1 record, while Royal Henderson and junior Brennon Whitermore were 3-2. The topic was whether income disparity is threatening the American Dream.
“They had very little prep time, and debate is quite competitive in Southeast this year, so those are very good results,” Shields said.
First-year debater Patrick Henderson finished third overall in speaker points and Whitermore placed seventh.
Patrick Henderson made the finals in original oratory, as did Jones for humorous interpretation.
The squad will host a meet Friday and Saturday at the Haines School. The event is a tune-up before February’s state competition in Anchorage, and volunteers serve as judges. Shields said vounteer timers are also needed.
Finals are Saturday afternoon, followed by command performances in the evening, Shields said, and he wants a big crowd for those acts.
“That’s the whole point, to put them through the fire, and they’re always up in front of 80 to 100 of their own kind, so the more adults there, the better,” he said.
One more “dress rehearsal for state” is a dessert auction scheduled for 7 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 2, at the school, Shields said. Performances will run along with the fundraiser.