Massachusetts High School Drama Guild

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The Massachusetts High School Drama Guild is usually known as MHSDG. According to their website, the MHSDG exists "for the charitable and educational purpose of promoting and strengthening excellence, access, and education in the theatrical arts for middle and secondary school students and teachers." Every year the MHSDG organizes the statewide high school theatre festival in March, as well as several other programs throughout the year.

A recent MHSDG Festival entry.
A recent MHSDG Festival entry.

Contents

[edit] High School Festival

The High School Drama Festival takes place over the course of the month of March in the state of Massachusetts. Any school may enter in, as long as the play is approved by the principal of the performing school and the entry form is submitted to the MHSDG. There are three levels of Massachusetts competition: Preliminaries, Semi-Finals, and State Finals.

[edit] Primary Rules of Festival

  • No play may run more than 40 minutes (timed by four "timers," the lowest time of which is accepted as the Running Time.)
  • No play may take a set-up or strike time of more than 5 minutes (timed by the Technical Director of the host site).
  • All rules of the Host Site apply.
  • All plays must be approved by the administration of the presenting school.
  • Schools may not perform shows that were performed the year before at the State Finals round.
  • Schools may not perform any play they have performed in the past three years.

[edit] Preliminary Round

All schools are randomly placed into Preliminaries host sites around the state. From each site, three schools are chosen to move on to the Semi-Final Round. There is no "1st place," "2nd Place," and "3rd Place." This level of Festival takes place over the course of a Saturday, usually the first weekend in March.

[edit] Semi-Final Round

The winners of Preliminaries are placed in the five Semi-Final host sites. From each site, three schools are chosen to move on to State Finals at the Back Bay Events Center, formerly known as the John Hancock Hall. Again, there are no 1st, 2nd, and 3rd places. Like Preliminaries, this take place on a Saturday, two weeks after Preliminaries.

[edit] State Finals

The 15 winners from Semi-Finals are brought to the Back Bay Events Center in Boston for a weekend of One-Act Plays. This level of Festival is held on the last weekend in March. Here, two winners are chosen to represent Massachusetts at the New England Drama Festival (See below).

[edit] State Finalists for the 2007 Drama Festival

(Note: Towns in parentheses indicate the town the school is located in, if not in the name of the school itself.)

[edit] New England Drama Festival

This level of Festival is not overseen by the MHSDG; rather, the New England Drama Council oversees the Festival. Like State Finals, it is held over the course of a weekend. As there is no further to go, this level is non-competitive.

Massachusetts Representatives:

Altenate, should either school be unable to participate:

[edit] Other Programs

[edit] Middle School Festival

The middle school festival is similar to the high school festival in a sense that schools are scattered to various host sites throughout the day. However, there is only one round of competition, and from each host site a "gold", "silver", and "bronze" place are chosen. This program is recent, first starting in 1995.

[edit] Logo Design Contest

Every year, the MHSDG choses a new logo to represent the high school festival on t-shirts, progrmas, etc. Logos are submitted by students from member schools.

2007 Winner: Rachel Henderson, North Shore Regional Technical High School

2007's Logo Contest Winner
2007's Logo Contest Winner

[edit] Set Design Contest

Students from member schools may submit models and sketches of set designs for various shows to be judged. Winners receive a scholarship from the MHSDG. This program usually takes place in the winter months.

2007 Winner: Jessica Hegarty, Reading Memorial High School

[edit] Monologue Contest

Every year the MHSDG offers students a chance to earn college scholarships based on presentation and performance. Students perform two contrasting monologues at a designated school in winter, where the winners are chosen. Top finishers perform their monologues at the state finals in late March.

2007 Winner: Nicholas J. Sulfaro, Framingham High School

[edit] Playwrighting Contest

Aspiring playwrights must submit their original plays to the MHSDG by January. These plays will be reviewed by a panel of judges to determine the finalists, and one judge will chose a winning play. The winning playwright receives a cash prize and a staged reading at the state finals in March.

2007 Winner: Javeb Mekknardt Klamms, The Bromfield School, "Colossus"

[edit] Workshops

The MHSDG also offers workshops for students and teachers throughout the year. Topics include acting, lighting design, scenic design, costume design, choreography, and improvisation.

[edit] External links

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