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4 Summit High School students place at Colorado Thespian Conference

BRECKENRIDGE — Last month, four Summit High School students — Riley Goossen, Maggie Fisk, Isabela Imamura and Mikaela Clark — performed at the 55th Colorado Thespian Conference in Denver. Out of about 5,600 attendees from Colorado, Wyoming and New Mexico, the local students did well enough to qualify for the International Thespian Festival in June at Indiana University in Bloomington.

“Being able to participate in a program like Thescon is amazing,” Goossen said. “The workshops and having the opportunity to perform for an experienced panel of judges and get their feedback is invaluable, and getting the chance to go to internationals in June is so exciting!”

Summit High School freshmen Riley Goossen, left, and Maggie Fisk qualified for the International Thespian Festival.

Freshmen Goossen and Fisk performed a piece together from “The Cripple of Inishmaan” by Martin McDonagh. The two were also recently in Breckenridge Backstage Theatre’s production of “A Christmas Carol” and coached by Nathan Autrey, Breckenridge Backstage Theatre’s artistic director.



“A big thanks to Nathan Autrey for helping us prepare, and to (Summit High School drama teacher) Ms. (Caroline) Hesford and our families for getting us there,” Fisk said.

Summit High School senior Isabela Imamura, left, will compete at the International Thespian Festival in Bloomington, Indiana, in June. Sophomore Mikaela Clark, right, was the only student from Summit High School to receive a perfect score at the Colorado Thespian Conference for her performance of “Gimme Gimme” from “Thoroughly Modern Millie.”

Senior Imamura and sophomore Clark each did a solo musical piece from different shows. Clark, who performed “Gimme Gimme” from “Thoroughly Modern Millie,” was the only student from Summit High School to receive a perfect score for her performance at the conference.



“It was a phenomenal experience to work with professional actors and vocal coaches within the different intensives,” Imamura, who sang “I’d Give My Life For You” from “Miss Saigon,” said. “I learned a lot from the experience, and it was nice to meet other students who have the same passions for theater as I.” 

Clark was in the recent production of “Sweeney Todd,” and Imamura will be in “The Great Gatsby” this month.

“Especially while competing, I got to see hundreds of unique performances with diverse casts, done in completely different ways than I could have imagined,” Clark said. “Being able to meet so many similar people allowed me to see that my dream can be a reality. So often the arts are disregarded and not given the attention they need simply because they are seen as hobbies rather than actual career paths.” 


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