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High School Division

2023 Annual Convention Highlights

Representing South Carolina at SETC in the Secondary School Festival

Christ Church Episcopal School with Sillyheart by Billy W. Boone

North Myrtle Beach High School Superhots! Book & Music by Joel Esher, Book & Lyrics by Blair Bodine

Special Thanks to Erin Gill (Woodmont HS) and Jonathon Long (Palmetto HS) (Festival Chairs for the High School Festival) for a wonderful, well-run festival with 25 school and over 400 students participating.

As part of the Annual Convention, SCTA hosts the High School Theatre Festival- giving the participants the opportunity to network with programs across the state and to be critiqued by professional theatre practitioners in their performance and technical work. Use this page to find all the information on how to register for the convention and the HS Theatre Festival.

All documents below were for the 2023 Festival and are for information only. Forms will be updated for the 2024 Festival by August 20, 2024.

This HS Theatre Festival Handbook has all the guidelines, deadlines, rules, and rubric for the 2023 One-Act Festival.

It also has links to all the ICs/Tech Olympics/College Audition documents.

Reminder: SCTA does not have any restrictions to what show a school may bring. Schools may choose to bring a production that was performed the year before and there can be duplications of a production in any given year. Schools must secure rights to perform a script or a cutting of the script and the production time is 45 minutes for set up, performance, and strike.

There are four Individual Events that students may participate in:

UPDATED as of 9/27/2023

Technical Specifications for the McAlister Auditorium can be found in this FOLDER. There is one written document, a FAQ sheet, and several layouts of the stage for general use. There is one layout with the acting area and highlighted area for the light console and an additional light plot that shows the areas listed on the Submaster list.

Due to agreements with publishers, there are new guidelines for securing rights for Monologue and Musical Solo performance pieces that may be used in virtual submissions and/or competitions.

Failure to follow the licensing guidelines may call for disqualification BEFORE the First Round of Individual Competitions begin. Licensing Guidelines for ICs

Please scroll down for specific documents about the festival.

If an individual/organization want to ONLY renew/join SCTA, please used the membership link to join.

The Individual Registration form- to register students and chaperones for the Convention and HSTF.

Use this form to upload the videos of the Monologue and Solo Musical entries.

  • Any required publisher documentation must be submitted with the videos.

  • Students must have been registered for Individual Events

Juniors and Seniors who are registered for the Unified College Audition/ Technical Portfolio Review must fill out the application.

This form is used to help with scheduling the one-acts into the Convention sessions. Schools are scheduled in the order of submissions.

New to SCTA and the High School Theatre Festival? High School Division Chair, Erin Gill has created a List of Mentor Teachers. Open the document to find individuals in your region who can answer questions and walk you through the process to be part of SC Theatre and the High School Theatre Festival.

To help with planning, the links below show the basic schedule and the fees and when forms are due for the Convention and the High School Theatre Festival:

There are 27 slots available for schools to register for the One-Act Festival. The top two scoring productions will represent South Carolina at the Southeastern Theatre Conference held in Mobile, AL, March 13-17, 2024.

Schools can attend without performing a one-act. Students may compete in Individual Competitions: Monologues, Solo Musicals, and Team Tech Olympics. Juniors and Seniors may also audition or present portfolios in the Unified College Auditions.

Congratulations to all the Theatre Companies that represented SC at the SETC Convention!

Woodmont High School, presenting "Sweet Nothing in My Ear"

  • Ben Vandonkelaar- All Star Cast

  • Hannah Vandonkelaar- All Star Cast

  • Outstanding Authenticity of Story- Judges Award

Rock Hill High School, presenting "Parallel Lives"

  • 3rd Place in the High School Theatre Festival

  • Laura Grace Dhillon- Outstanding Performer

  • Gabriella Daniels- All Star Cast

  • Chloe Newport- All Star Cast

MEET YOUR DIVISION LEADERSHIP

Erin Gill (High School Division Chair) grew up in Lexington, South Carolina, and attended Winthrop University, where she received her BA in Theatre and performed in and directed many productions. After graduating, Erin spent her first 2 years of teaching at Ashley Ridge High School in Summerville, South Carolina, where she acted as the inaugural theatre teacher. She also performed with the Footlight Players (Ensemble, Oklahoma!). After moving to the upstate, Erin worked as the theatre teacher at Woodmont Middle School from 2013-2018, where she was named teacher of the year for the 2015-2016 school year. In 2018, Erin accepted her current position as a theatre director at Woodmont High School, where she has directed, designed, and produced many pieces, including Annie, Radium Girls, and I Bring You Flowers, which was named first alternate to represent South Carolina at the International Thespian Festival in 2020. Erin has been seen on stage around the upstate, including at Market Theatre (Miss Flemming, Heathers: The Musical) and Mill Town Players (Gloria, Bye Bye Birdie). Erin serves as a Lead Theatre Teacher for Greenville County Schools and Vice-Chair for the High School Division of the South Carolina Theatre Association. She is currently pursuing a Masters of Fine Arts in Theatre Education from Mississippi University for Women. In her spare time, she enjoys hiking, sewing, and being creative. Erin has two beautiful boys and an amazing husband whose support makes her dreams possible.

Jonathon Long (High School Division Co-Chair) was raised in Rock Hill,
South Carolina, and attended Winthrop University. He received his BA in Theatre with a K-12 certification in education.  After moving to the upstate, Jonathon taught for 3 years at Woodmont High School in Piedmont, SC, before moving to his current position at Palmetto High School. He has directed, and designed for a number of productions in his time at Palmetto, including The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee, Mamma Mia, and Matt & Ben which was chosen as Chapter Select and represented South Carolina at the International Thespian Festival in 2019. Jonathonz has been seen on stage with the Market Theatre in Heathers: The Musical and Bonnie & Clyde. When not working Jonathon is often found spending time with his wife, Dorie, and son, Grayson, who keep him going every day.