Last year, it caught some by surprise.
Now, the Malcolm drama troupe has everyone’s attention.
While they came up short of repeating as state champions, another Class A state trophy is headed to the Clippers’ trophy case as Malcolm claimed runner-up honors at the Dec. 8 NSAA State Play Production Championships in Norfolk.
Last year, Malcolm ended Gretna’s 12-year stranglehold on Class A. This year, they were in a field that included the perennial powerhouse and its new neighbor, Gretna East.
The first-year school earned its first state title with 179 points awarded by a three-judge panel for its performance of “Lend Me A Tenor.”
Malcolm was second and Gretna was third. It was the lowest finish for the Dragons since 1997 and its first time since 2001 going back-to-back years without a title.
“Gretna is a powerhouse of talent and amazing theatre,” Malcolm drama director Tami Maytum said. “I knew we had our work cut out for us again. The thing about the kids on my team is that they really aren’t daunted by anything.
“They’ve seen it all. You name it, I think they’ve overcome it. These kids think they can because we tell them they can.”
It was Malcolm’s third consecutive year earning a Class A trophy. The Clippers were also runner-up in 2021. Overall, the school has two state titles in play production and has been runner-up on four occasions.
Maytum – in her 12th year as the director of Malcolm – spent the six days between districts and state making tweaks they felt were necessary to appeal to the judges at state.
“We went over ballots from a judge we had already seen this year who we would see at state and from another judge who we had seen in previous years,” Maytum said. “We made a list of things these judges would be looking for – bigger reactions, broader gestures, and larger freezes and facials.”
One final tweak came from Maytum’s son, assistant director Ike Maytum.
“He had been holding a little trick up his sleeve for the final wish in the play,” Maytum said. “The twinkly lights on the backdrop. Those lights got revealed to the team on Tuesday morning. The kids loved the lights.
“I was under the weather most of the week. I am so thankful for a group of directors – Mike Maytum, Brett Baker, Nicole Benischek and Ike, that had my back.”
Six Malcolm thespians earned outstanding performer awards: Dalton Amen, Scarlett Battles, Reilly Carlson, Karter Kinkaid, Logan Schumacher and Anna Schweitzer.
Out of a student population of 210, there are 117 Malcolm students involved in the school’s one-act. The school is void of a theatre, or even a stage on which to prepare.
At Malcolm, a machine shed known as “The Galley” is home to early morning rehearsals throughout the fall. The high school gym floor serves as the school’s only stage.
“I don’t think we really look at the size of other schools’ enrollment as a Goliath as much as we do the absence of facilities,” Maytum said. “Even though those other schools have student bodies the size of small towns, our program, by far, has the largest number of kids participating.”
The ongoing success of the Malcolm program has been, in large part, thanks to community support.
“We owe the most thanks to our community, family, and friends,” Maytum said. “Without them, we are just the people that do that weird artsy stuff up in that shed. They sew, provide food, show up by the hundreds at competitions, and believe in us and the importance of providing this quality theatre experience for these kids.”
