Schools

East Ridge Theater Buff Honored with Two Awards

Senior Joe Johnson has been a fixture behind the scenes and on the stage at East Ridge High School.

He has crafted sets and taken center stage.

Now, student Joe Johnson has been recognized for his work in the school’s theater department.

Johnson, a senior from Woodbury, recently received a Meritorious Award in Theater Arts from the Minnesota Scholars of Distinction program, sponsored by the state Department of Education. (He was one of only 37 students from across Minnesota to be honored.)

Find out what's happening in Woodburywith free, real-time updates from Patch.

Johnson has also been told that he will receive a Spotlight Award from the Hennepin Theater Trust for Technical Theater at the group’s June 11 ceremony. He is the first student in the history of the program to receive two Spotlight Awards in the same year, according to a release from East Ridge theater coordinator Amanda Hestwood.

Johnson was the first student in the brief history of East Ridge to for a performance, showing off his skills for the school’s fall 2011 production of The Mystery of Edwin Drood.

Find out what's happening in Woodburywith free, real-time updates from Patch.

     

He also showed off his acting chops recently in the ensemble performance of You Can’t Take It With You.

     

Johnson—who has told Patch said he hopes to go into animation after college (working at Disney’s Pixar would be a dream job)—also received a superior ranking from the National Individual Events Showcase and was invited to showcase his work at the International Thespian Festival, according to Hestwood. And he earned a scholarship through the Minnesota Best 100 program. These achievements were for his scene design for The Mystery of Edwin Drood.


Get more local news delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for free Patch newsletters and alerts.

We’ve removed the ability to reply as we work to make improvements. Learn more here