Whiz Kid: Whitney Russell

Patch spoke with 16-year-old Whitney Russel, a Tartan High School junior who recently received an award from Hennepin Theatre Trust's SpotLight Musical Theatre Program. 

According to Hennepin Theatre Trust's website, evaluators review high school productions and provide constructive feedback to students. Then, students are awarded in a number of theatrical categories. Russel received an honorable mention performance in a supporting role for her performance in "Once on This Island." 

Here's what she had to say:

What is it about theatre that you enjoy?  My favorite part about theatre is getting to perform for people and make them happy.

What was your role in "Once on This Island?"  Erzulie, Goddess of Love.

How did it feel to receive the Spotlight award? Were you surprised?  I was really excited to receive the award because that meant I would have the opportunity to perform on the Orpheum Stage in June with the other Spotlight honorees from around the state. I feel very fortunate to have this great opportunity and I’m looking forward to performing with some of my “Island” cast mates again.

How much work went into the performance?  We started rehearsing for “Once on This Island” way back in February and we typically would rehearse every day after school for a couple hours. The rehearsals got longer and more intense as we got closer to opening weekend.

What was challenging about your acting experience? In the show, the entire cast played the role of a storyteller. We were all playing Haitian storytellers who were trying to comfort a frightened little girl in the midst of a storm. A challenge we all faced was getting into our Haitian storyteller characters because we had to think about their daily struggles and imagine the devastation they’ve been through, then we had to try and portray that on stage.

What can we expect from you, and your theater group, in coming months?  We’ve got a couple summer shows coming up and then Tartan’s season next year includes a full play, a competition One Act play and a spring musical.

What's in your future? My future goals include going to college and pursuing a degree in music and vocal performance.