Palmer Trinity School

two categories. In March 2021, 20 pieces competed as part of the Florida Thespian State Festival, also a virtual competition. As we hit October and many students returned to campus, I began planning for our annual all-school musical. This year, PTS Theatre proudly produced a one-hour version of Sister Act Jr. I decided to move the show from March to April to allow for maximum flexibility in the rehearsal schedule, as I knew students might have to miss some due to quarantine and online learning. In light of COVID-19, we ran the show with only 30 students, converted the middle school chickee into an outdoor rehearsal space, required students to wear masks at all times while rehearsing and ultimately performed the show for some faculty and staff and families of the cast and crew only. To really set the scene, Stages Plus, a company that specializes in the setup and performance of outdoor concerts, constructed a 36-foot stage in the corner field, by the North Gate entrance, with full lights and sound. For one week, the students rehearsed on this outdoor stage and got ready for our limited audience. This was definitely one of the most innovative and professional productions I have had the privilege of doing here at Palmer Trinity School! To make sure no one missed out, a video of the production was shared with the hundreds of people who were not able to attend in person. The 16 members of our spring Theater Production class closed our school theater season at the end of April with The Laramie Project. Alongside the advisory program, we used this play to explore diversity and understand how—on October 6, 1988—intolerance led to a gay student at the University of Wyoming being beaten, tortured, and left to die near Laramie, Wyoming. This incident changed the face of hate crime legislation in America. This mature and moving play was performed outdoors for a very limited audience consisting of just family members and some faculty and staff. This year, especially, I want to thank our PTS Administration for allowing theater to still take place in a safe and controlled environment. I also want to thank our students, as these shows would not have happened without their flexibility, dedication, drive and love of theater. They constantly inspire my creativity and helped keep performing arts alive here during the pandemic—a time when we needed the power and escape of theater more than ever before. S U MME R 2 0 2 1 7

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