123 Iowa high schools had groups selected as “Outstanding All-Staters” at the IHSSA All-State Large Group Speech Festival held on February 18 at The Iowa State Center in Ames. Approximately 24,000 students started at the district level from 466 school memberships. Approximately 1,800 students earned the right to be named as Outstanding Performers.
The following schools were selected as Critic's Choice for the IHSSA Large Group All-State Festival. This Critic's Choice is selected by a professional in the specific field as a top performer in the State of Iowa in that performance area for 2023. The Sweepstakes Award, named after E. Wayne Cooley, is awarded to the school with the most entries performing at the All-State Festival. Listed below are the recipients of the awards for 2023.
2023:
ONE ACT PLAY: Cedar Rapids Washington
READERS THEATRE: Maquoketa Valley
CHORAL READING: Siouxland Christian
ENSEMBLE ACTING: Dubuque Senior
GROUP MIME: Grinnell
SOLO MIME: Dubuque Senior
TELEVISION NEWSCASTING: IKM-Manning
GROUP IMPROVISATION: Decorah
MUSICAL THEATRE: Clear Creek Amana
RADIO BROADCASTING: Dubuque Senior
SHORT FILM: IKM-Manning
E. WAYNE COOLEY SWEEPSTAKES: Dubuque Senior
