News

Monday February 11, 2008

Santa Barbara High School to Perform HAIR at the Fringe in Scotland

The Santa Barbara High School Theatre Program has been selected to perform in Edinburgh, Scotland at the American High School Theatre Festival in August 2008. The annual festival, which was established in 1994, runs in conjunction with the world-renowned Edinburgh Fringe Festival. Each year many schools are nominated to represent the United States at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival—the world’s largest performing arts festival—held each August in Edinburgh, Scotland.

Top high school programs are identified based on their most recent bodies of work, honors, and awards, technical ability, community involvement, philosophies and recommendations. The high school theatre programs are nominated by state, regional, and national theatre organizations as well as university professors to participate in the festival. Each nominated school receives an application, which is then reviewed by the board of advisors, a panel of college theatre professionals from across the country.

Santa Barbara High School has chosen one of the seminal works in American theatre, the first rock opera and the American tribal love-rock musical, HAIR. Santa Barbara High School’s show will be designed by Mike Madden of the Ensemble Theatre, choreographed by Christina McCarthy, and costumed by Lise Lange.

Santa Barbara High School’s Performing Arts Department Chair Otto Layman, indicates that the students are hard at work raising approximately $5,000 per student needed, which includes meals, airfare, lodging, two days in London, and 12 days in Scotland both performing and attending productions. Anyone interested in supporting the program is encouraged to contact Performing Arts Department Chair Otto Layman at olayman@sbsdk12.org or (805) 966-9101, extension 220.