The UIL One-Act Play The Elephant Man took alternate play at Zone A competition Monday, March 25. The two advancing plays were Leander and Dripping Springs, who put on the shows Lend Me a Tenor and The Outsiders, respectively. Both of the schools will advance to District along with Zone B’s winners Cedar Park and Vista Ridge.

Five students did receive individual awards in the technical and acting categories. Senior Amanda Malan received the All-Star technical crew award, while seniors Zack Short and Nick Hage took home Honorable Mention All-Star Cast awards for their portrayals of Dr. Frederick Treves and Ross. The highest honors brought home that night were the All-Star Cast awards given to senior Joshua Pagan for his portrayal of the elephant man and junior Austin Thompson for his interpretation of Carr Gomm.

“Even though we didn’t move on, I’m fine with what happened,” Pagan said. “After our performance a mentally challenged girl from another school came in to thank us for the show. She said that she faces a lot of challenges at school every day and that we really inspired her. She gave me a hug and left. After that I would have been perfectly content leaving and missing the awards ceremony, and I wouldn’t have traded that for moving on.”