Members of the Gold Masque Drama Club were filled with excitement on Monday, May 18th, as the Metro Award nominations were announced. The Metros—short for the Metropolitan High School Theater Awards—are a series of awards given to high schoolers in Bergen and surrounding counties who stand out in their school’s spring musical. Following being nominated, certain nominees perform bits from their show at an awards ceremony. Two seniors, Zach Calderon and Gabby Almanza, received nominations.
Zach Calderon, who played Gomez in this year’s production of The Addams Family, received a nomination for “Outstanding Vocal Performance.” Zach has been involved with Gold Masque for three years; he has performed in The Drowsy Chaperone, Xanadu, and The Addams Family. Zach is a great performer and incredibly strong singer, evidenced by the fact that he has received a nomination for the same award last year. Upon being asked how he felt being nominated, Zach commented, “It is a great honor to be nominated for a Metro. Last year, I was nominated for the same award, and was given the opportunity to perform on stage for the opening number with my fellow nominees,” referring to the performance section of the awards ceremony. He added on, mentioning that “It was a great experience, and I am so excited to take on that same role this June!”
Gabby Almanza, who played Alice in The Addams Family, was nominated for “Outstanding Performance in a Featured Role” and has been involved with Gold Masque since she was a freshman. Gabby has previously received two Metro nominations, once in her sophomore year for her acting in The Drowsy Chaperone and again in her junior year for a group number in Footloose. Gabby works hard to make her character come alive, ensuring that each performance is emotional and passionate. She remarked that she is “so honored to have been nominated for a role that has meant so much to me,” and that she is “so grateful for the opportunity to show off my comedic and dramatic acting in this role. Performing has been my true passion since I was a little girl.”
In addition, junior Lily Cirrito was nominated for “Outstanding Achievement in Hair and Makeup Design,” and faculty member Mr. Bernard received a nomination for “Outstanding Achievement in Lighting Design.”
The awards night is on Monday, June 15, at the Purchase College Performing Arts Center, and a livestream of the event can be found on the Metro’s website (https://www.hstheaterawards.com/). Each nominee is extremely dedicated and has worked incredibly hard; good luck to all!
