Port Chester High School Students Earn Metro Award Nomination

PORT CHESTER, NY — Port Chester High School's remarkable performing arts students will soon be trading the footlights for the red carpet.

The Port Chester-Rye Union Free School District announced that Port Chester High School's spring musical, "Legally Blonde," has just been nominated for Outstanding Peformance by a Stage Crew in the 2024 Metropolitan High School Theater Awards.

Christina Baurle, the theater director, said the musical was challenging but crew members made sure that the production ran smoothly.

"Legally Blonde" required hundreds of props and costume pieces throughout the show, as well as nearly 30 scene shifts to be done by moving set pieces on and off the stage. In addition, the stage crew worked with minimal wing space, as well as nearly 50 people backstage between crew and cast members.

"The show required our actors to change into costumes rapidly and our crew members supported and organized it well," Baurle said. "They did a fantastic job problem-solving and improving our show rehearsal after rehearsal."

The Metro Awards are presented to musical theater productions, actors and and creative teams who take to the stage every spring in high schools in Westchester, Rockland, Putnam, and Bergen counties, according to the awards website.

Port Chester High School is one of 63 participating schools whose performances were evaluated by judges who attended performances and nominated schools in 36 different categories.

Baurle said she was grateful to her dedicated group of students and stage crew, as well as her assistant director Toni Ash and stage managers Kayla Castillo, Amelia Jimenez and Sophia Tellez who led the crew for performances.

"Crew, although extremely important to the success of a production, are often overlooked because they are behind the scenes and not in the spotlight," Baurle explained. "It is great that our crew gets a chance to shine with this Metro nomination and to celebrate their hard work."

The Metro awards ceremony will be held on June 10 at Purchase College.