JHS Seniors Earn Recognition For Theater Excellence
Two Jordan High School seniors, Ethan Johnson and Gabriel Campos, were recognized at the International Thespian Festival at Indiana University from June 20-27 for their achievements in musical theatre and playwriting, earning Thespy Awards for their work on the stage.
Johnson received a perfect score in the Musical Theatre Song Solo category for his performance of “Santa Fe” from Newsies. Campos earned an award for playwriting after receiving perfect scores from both judges for his original 30-page one-act play, Troubled Water. For Johnson, the award was an opportunity to perform one of his favorite theatre songs in front of a large audience.
Ethan found out about the award unexpectedly while he was on his way to watch a performance by another school at the festival. Jordan theater director Mrs. Bellido received a notification that Johnson had earned a perfect score. “We jumped out of the car and celebrated the news immediately,” Johnson said. “I honestly was not expecting it. I had felt like I did a good job on my solo but it still kind of shocked me.”
Campos’s recognition came in an equally unexpected way. During the festival’s opening showcase, eight of the top playwrights had portions of their plays performed by professional actors. Campos was the final playwright featured.
“The audience erupted into applause and I was in shock and didn’t really know how to react,” Campos said. “I frankly didn’t expect it at all... It was truly surreal.” Campos served as the sole playwright for Troubled Water. “I worked on this script for almost an entire year,” Campos said. “It drew heavily from my own experiences and was really special to me personally, so it felt very good to have something that means so much to me be recognized like that.”
For both seniors, recognition represents more than simply adding another award to their accomplishments.
Johnson said the award reinforced his passion for musical theatre and his aspirations for the future. He hopes to eventually become a professional actor and singer but first plans to pursue college.
Campos said his Thespy is the most impressive award he has received, but its personal significance is what makes it especially meaningful. “No award I’ve won has been for something so personal to me, or something that I spent so much time on,” Campos said. The play’s recognition also gave Campos confidence in his willingness to address difficult subjects through his writing. “I tackled some extremely intense subject matter in my play, spoke about hard subjects very close to my heart, and pulled no punches in depicting real flawed people,” he shared.
Campos plans to continue writing, a current project being his science-fiction novel that he has been working on for four years. Johnson hopes to continue developing his skills as an actor as he prepares for college and a potential professional career.
Campos also shared a message for other young artists; individuality matters. He encourages other students not to let outside pressure push toward conformity, encouraging them to stay true to who they are and to be unique. "Don't let anyone pressure you to conform or be someone you aren’t because there will be someone else out there willing to recognize what makes you special,” Campos emphasized.
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