At a glance
* The eighth annual Georgia High School Musical Theatre Awards will begin at 7:30 p.m. April 21 after a red carpet event at 6 p.m.
* Tickets are available to the public for $25-27 and can be purchased starting March 18 online at ticketmaster.com, by calling (800) 653-8000 or at the Cobb Energy Center box office.
* Last year, West Forsyth High School took home eight Shuler Hensley awards, the most the program has received at one time.
FORSYTH COUNTY — All five public high schools in Forsyth County will be represented at the opening and closing ceremonies of a prestigious Tony-style awards ceremony for high school theater.
The 13 students are among 128 from 54 schools in 23 counties who were chosen to form the 2016 Shuler Student Ensemble Cast and Students Take a Role (STAR) Council.
The cast will perform at the eighth annual Georgia High School Musical Theatre Awards, while the council will serve as production assistants for the April 21 awards show at the Cobb Energy Performing Arts Centre that celebrates excellence in high school musical theater.
“It is a true honor to mentor and perform for the eighth year with this incredible talented group of high school students,” said Shuler Hensley, a Marietta native.
“The awards show is filled with inspiring group and individual performances. For many of these students, the moments that they have on stage can change their lives.”
Hensley won the 2002 Tony Award for best actor in a musical for his performance as Jud in “Oklahoma!” on Broadway.
Local students who were nominated by their high school directors to be in the ensemble are:
* Forsyth Central: Jillian Fincher and Andy Turner
* Lambert: Emily Crabtree and Maddi Romeo
* North: Alexandria Bagwell and Caleb Barks
* South: Daniel Holder and Susi Mishkin
* West: Job Bos and Adrianne Crawford
They will join 86 other students from throughout Georgia public and private schools who will be instructed by a professional team that includes a director, choreographer, music director and Hensley.
Students chosen for the STAR Council are:
* Forsyth Central: Jarod Bandy
* Lambert: Alden Kennedy
* North: Amanda Day
The STAR Council gives technical theater students a professional and educational experience in theater and television production, according to Becky Erwin of ArtsBridge Foundation, the arts education outreach arm of the center that puts on the show.
High school theater directors nominated students to the council who displayed “leadership, dedication and a strong work ethic within their high school theater program.”
Students on the council will work alongside the professional designers and technicians to gain experience during the awards show. They also will have the chance to participate in “several exclusive, behind-the-scenes events throughout the year.”