Thursday, March 14, LEUSD’s Board of Trustees recognized Lakeside High’s Theater Arts program for outstanding achievement. Honorees include cast and crew members from the fall production of Kimberly Akimbo, along with Mr. Scott Karlan, Theater Arts teacher, and LHS’s Production Management Department, headed by Jason Kaiser.

Lakeside High School’s “Out of the Box Players” are having a full-feted year following their award winning fall production of Kimberly Akimbo. In January, the California Educational Theatre Association (CETA) presented Lakeside High with its highest honor—the Outstanding Ensemble Award—during the Southern High School Theatre Festival at California State University, Fullerton. This is Lakeside High’s 6^th First Place CETA division award in nine years. Judges placed LHS's performance of Kimberly Akimbo at the top of the list of 67 entered schools. Cast member Eddie Mosqueda received CETA’s Outstanding Actor trophy for his performance.

Kimberly Akimbo cast members John D’Arcy, Candice Hirt, and Eddy Mosqueda were among scholarship recipients chosen to attend the annual California Youth in Theatre Day (CYIT) in Sacramento, March 12. Their visit included breakfast with state legislators, a chance to meet with local representatives, attend workshops, and sharing in student performances of monologues, dance, songs, and scenes held on stage at the Sacramento Theatre Company, CYIT co-host.

Theater Arts Teacher Scott Karlan took a gamble in selecting David Lindsay-Abaire’s coming of age “dramedy” Kimberly Akimbo for Lakeside High’s fall production. The show contains mature language and themes about a 16 year old girl with progeria (a rare genetic disorder that causes premature aging), whose dream is to have a normal life, despite her dysfunctional family.

An enthusiastic audience response, and praise from the CETA adjudication panel, has proven LHS’s award-winning out of the box approach works!

LEUSD congratulates the Kimberly Akimbo cast, Isabella Sotelo, John D'Arcy, Eddie Mosqueda, Serena Ong, Gracee Garcia (understudy), and Candice Hirt as Kimberly. The Board of Trustees also recognizes Lakeside High’s Theater Arts teacher Mr. Scott Karlan, and the Production Management Department, which ran crew for the show, and has also received several CETA awards.

Pictured below, Candice Hirt as Kimberly Akimbo, with John D'Arcy (lower right) and Eddie Mosqueda.