Gunn Theatre Wins Best Contemporary Play For "Men On Boats"

This year marked the 20th anniversary of the Halo Awards, which are presented by Seven Angels Theatre and celebrate the best in Connecticut high school theatre. The awards were presented at a red carpet event on May 30 at Connecticut’s historic Palace Theatre in Waterbury. 

Gunn Theatre received a combined 15 Halo Award nominations this year, including Best Performance by a Cast in an Ensemble Production, Best Contemporary Musical, and The Fearless Award, for Men On Boats, which was presented in November 2022, and Head Over Heels, presented in February 2023.

In his director’s note for Men On Boats, Kent Burnham, Director of Theatre Arts, recalled that he was first introduced to the play when his wife, Tracy Liz Miller, directed it at Arizona State University in 2017. “I was immediately taken by its theatricality, the physical storytelling, the humor, how it reimagined history, and who gets to share that history,” Burnham said. “Ms. Backhaus turned the story on its head, creating an opportunity for theatre-makers to share this story, often populated by cisgender white males, with a diverse cast of storytellers, and she asked that anyone producing the play cast actors that depart from the historical record, not only with regard to race, but also gender.”

“Theatre tells a story; it doesn't re-enact it,” he continued. “This story of exploration down the Green and Colorado Rivers in 1869, taken from John Wesley Powell's journals, allows us to lean into and question history and ask: Who gets to share that history? Whose stories were untold or erased? Why does that serve us as a society? If we are more curious, inquisitive, and questioning, we could create room for new history, new stories, and new heroes.”

In preparation for their roles, the cast at Gunn worked with Miller as a Movement Consultant on the production, practiced their rowing skills on the Shepaug River in Washington, and participated in an on-campus workshop led by artist-in-residence Lisa Wolpe, an expert on gender-flipping Shakespeare as well as an actress, director, teacher, writer, traveler, and distinguished scholar. 

Congratulations to all of our 2023 Halo Award nominees:

Best Contemporary Musical
The Frederick Gunn School for Head Over Heels

Best Contemporary Play
The Frederick Gunn School for Men On Boats

Best Performance by a Cast in an Ensemble Production
The Cast of Men On Boats

The Fearless Award
The Frederick Gunn School for Men On Boats

Best Costume Design and/or Execution
Katherine Johnson ’25, Polly Ross ’26 & Anya Zigmont ’26 for Head Over Heels  

Best Lighting Design and/or Execution
Joshua Ly ’23 for Head Over Heels

Best Sound Design and/or Execution
Katherine Aguirre-Felipe ’26 for Men On Boats

Best Special Effects
Joshua Ly ’23 and Katherine Aguirre-Felipe ’26 for Men On Boats

Best Comic Male Performance in a Play
Will Dyer ’23 as Goodman in Men On Boats 

Best Comic Female Performance in a Play
Sofia Panzer ’25 as Hawkins in Men On Boats

Best Female Standout Performance in an Ensemble Production
Audrey Richards ’23 as Major John Wesley Powell in Men On Boats

Best Performance by a Couple or Dynamic Duo in a Play
Audrey Richards ’23 and Jo Wimler ’24 as Major John Wesley Powell and William Dunn, respectively, in Men On Boats

Best Performance by a Leading Actress in a Contemporary Musical
Audrey Richards ’23 as Pamela in Head Over Heels

Best Performance by a Supporting Actress in a Musical
Siena Taylor ’23 as Mopsa in Head Over Heels

Best Performance by a Couple or Dynamic Duo in a Musical
Siena Taylor ’23 and Audrey Richards ’23 as Mopsa and Pamela, respectively, in Head Over Heels

View photos from our 2022-23 theatre season in our SmugMug Galleries.