LARAMIE — More than 600 students, including several from Worland High School, will participate in the annual Wyoming State Drama competition that began yesterday and concludes tomorrow at the University of Wyoming.

The UW Department of Theatre and Dance hosts the event.

Students in grades 9-12, representing more than 25 schools, will compete in nine separate categories on the UW campus. Students will compete in performance and technical design competitions.

The annual event, held since 1972, was originally the State Drama Festival, with International Thespian activities part of the festivities. In 1989, the state drama event became a competition, which is now a Wyoming High School Activities Association-scheduled event. Wyoming Educators of Secondary Theatre (WEST) sponsors the annual event. WEST supports and enhances quality theater education in Wyoming schools.

“We are happy to host all of the Wyoming high school theater students in the Department of Theatre and Dance. This event marks a great moment to showcase our renovations and state-of-the-art performing facilities,” says Margaret Wilson, department chair. “It also gives students from all over the state of Wyoming an opportunity to interact with our reputable faculty that we have in the UW Department of Theatre and Dance.”

Cecilia Aragon, UW Department of Theatre and Dance associate professor, is the Wyoming State Drama producer.

“This is one of the largest events where the UW Department of Theatre and Dance provides statewide services and stewardship to drama teachers, coaches, sponsors and students in all of Wyoming high schools,” she says.

Students also have the opportunity to audition, interview and display portfolios for all of the recruiting community college representatives in Wyoming and universities in the Rocky Mountain region.

Students will compete and be judged in: one-act play categories -- proscenium, arena, group and performance art; monologues -- humorous and dramatic; two-person scenes -- humorous and dramatic; scenic design; costume design; makeup design -- real and fantasy; lighting design; publicity; and original scripts -- one-act, monologue and duet.

Worland High School Drama Department will be performing their one-act plays “Coney Island Christmas” and the original “Connections.”

“Connections” is an original written by drama advisor Rick Dorn with assistance from his members. He said he put together the gist of the play and his club members finished it. It’s titled “Connections” and is about a lonely heart guy meeting a sad girl who meet a “matchmaker” salesperson.

“It’s about what makes people connect,” Dorn said.

“Coney Island Christmas” by Donald Margulies is about a grandmother remembering her childhood when she was cast as Jesus Christ the narrator for the school play. As a Jew, being cast as Jesus Christ, upsets her family.

Worland also has two returning state champions competing this week —Morgan Pennington who won the state championship in costume design last year; and Sariah Durrant who has won a state championship in three events during her career at WHS — costume, humorous duet and makeup.