Young Performing Artists In McLean Awarded Scholarships By The Alden

MCLEAN, VA — The Alden Theater at the McLean Community Center awarded scholarships to 11 high school students as part of the 2023 James C. Macdonald Performing Arts Scholarship Competition.

The competition began with auditions in February and ended with final competitions on stage at The Alden on April 19. A panel of 11 judges picked the winners in each category. The winners were announced on Tuesday.

The James C. Macdonald Performing Arts Scholarship Competition promotes study in the arts by high school students who live or attend school in the McLean district.

Scholarship prizes of $1,200 were awarded to students placing first in each of four categories: dance, instrumental music, theater and vocal music. Second-place winners were awarded $800, and third-place winners won $400.

The 2023 winners were:

Dance

• First Place: Melina Turnage, McLean High School
• Second Place: Olivia Gilmore, Langley High School
• Third Place: Sicilia Oliver, McLean High School

Instrumental Music

• First Place: Goldie Woods, McLean High School
• Second Place: Sophia Lin, Thomas Jefferson
• Third Place: Kian Choi, McLean High School

Theater

• First Place: Abby Joe, Langley High School
• Second Place: Scarlett Spano, Langley High School
• Third Place: Michaela Pearce, McLean High School

Vocal Music

• First Place: Lily Chopus, Langley High School
• Second Place: Aditya Gupta, Langley High School
• Third Place: Michaela Pearce, McLean High School

The competition’s judges were:

Dance

• May Kesler, dancer, choreographer, physical therapist and massage therapist and owner of Kesler Physical & Massage Therapy, LLC.
• Anne Sidney, creative movement, ballet and modern dance techniques teacher and master teaching artist for the Wolf Trap Institute for Early Learning through the Arts.
• Terlene D. Terry-Todd, dancer, actor, choreographer and professional teaching artist, founding artistic director of the Reston Institute for the Arts and a Master Teaching Artist for Wolf Trap Education.

Instrumental Music

• Sarah B. Markovits, performer, instructor and choral director of the Upper School and the Arts Department head at Sidwell Friends School in Washington, D.C.
• Drew Owen, a freelance cellist, faculty member of the Washington Conservatory of Music and cello instructor at Howard University.
• Ethan Watermeier, interdisciplinary teaching artist and musician-in-residence and coordinator of Vocal Studies at American University.

Theater

• Meghan Pafumi, middle and high school theater teacher and production director for Fairfax County Public Schools since 1996.
• J. Mark Rogers, Performing Arts Specialist for Loudoun County Public Schools.

Vocal Music

• Jennifer Edelen, director of Wolf Trap Institute for Early Learning through the Arts.
• Kelly Smith Jones, vocal coach and member of the Vocal Faculty at American University.
• Ethan Watermeier, interdisciplinary teaching artist and musician-in-residence and coordinator of Vocal Studies at American University.