By Simone Bender

Best Stage Presence

During the show, the set seemed to really come alive and one performer who really contributed to this was junior Annika Montana. Playing the role of Vivienne, she was able to command the attention of the audience quickly and effectively with just one line, which stood out to me personally.

Best Actor

While all of the cast was fantastic at acting, the one guy who I thought ended up with the best overall acting was probably senior Ian Lynam. He was hilarious as Nikos during the second act, truly embodying his character in a realistic and hysterical way.

Best Actress

Senior Savannah Lee was insanely good in her performance as Paulette. To be completely honest, I don’t think anyone could have done it better than her. I think she really did the original character justice while adding her own spins and humor into the performance.

Best Instrumentalist

I was impressed to learn that while the majority of the orchestra pit for this production consisted of professional adults, there was one student, freshman Lydia Trigg, took on the task head-first of being the one and only violinist to play for the show. She performed marvelously.

Best Bend & Snap

The “Bend and Snap” scene from Legally Blonde is one of the most iconic and well-known. While it would be easy to get the idea wrong and not do it justice, senior Mackenzie Bailey’s “Bend and Snap” as cheerleader Serena was flawless and the best on stage.

Best at Explaining One Can be Gay and European

The part of the show that had me laughing out loud the most was definitely the scene featuring the song “Gay or European”, but what had me falling out of my seat from laughing so hard was definitely freshman Konnor Yoder-Eastes’ line from Carlos: “This man is gay and European!”, I think his delivery was perfect.

Best Vocal Technique

Senior Ian Brooks not only delivered his lines brilliantly as the male lead, Emmett, never breaking character on stage, but also has the best vocal technique I witnessed onstage. He had great tone, expression, and vowel shapes throughout his singing, which really contributed to the overall professionalism of the show.

Best Stage Smile

Playing lead Elle Woods, junior Ava Lee contributed so much to the show, but one thing that really stood out to me was her smile. Her stage smile really made the character of Elle come alive and enhanced her acting performance.

Most Entertaining Supporting Actor

At the times when I felt as an audience member that no one watching could keep from laughing was when senior Dylan Staten was on stage. Both his character and presence playing delivery man Kyle were so funny to watch and kept the whole audience actively watching.

Best at Pulling Off the Worst Perm

Senior Vivian Rodkey’s acting was hilariously good. For me, the highlight of her performance as Enid Hoopes was when she came out on stage wearing a ridiculous-looking wig meant to represent a horrible perm. While I feel as though most people would’ve been awkward trying to maintain character in this situation, she took it and flew with it, keeping me laughing until her hair went back to straight.

Best Adult Actor

Many administrators were featured in this year’s production and while I was skeptical at first, I think it was a good choice. All of the adult actors delivered well, but I think the one who probably best portrayed their character was Dr. Aaron Willis as Elle’s dad. I was impressed by not only his ability to act, but also with his singing ability.

Best at Jump-Roping and Singing at the Same Time

A lot of things in this show shocked me, but probably the biggest one was senior Emma Cremeans’ ability to jump rope but also continue singing flawlessly at the same time. It takes a lot of breath support to be able to jump continuously and produce a tune without too much breathiness coming through. Kudos to her.

Best at Being a Turkey

During the show, during Thanksgiving and the holiday season, the characters Pilar, Margot, and Serena appear in corresponding wear to represent the times. My favorite of these was senior Colleen Tiernan dawning a Thanksgiving-turkey style head costume. She truly embodied the character of the turkey in my opinion.