Cappies Gala 2025: A Night to Remember
By Aaria Nair ‘26, Staff Writer; Edited by Kat Willson ‘26, Editor-in-Chief
Our Ridley College students involved in this year’s theatre productions and the Ridley College Critic Team had the opportunity to attend the 2025 Cappies gala on Tuesday, 20th May! Cappies Niagara is an organization comprising various schools across the Niagara region, involving critics from 12 schools that attend local high school productions and write reviews on them! Some reviews from each show also have the opportunity to be published in the newspapers! At the end of each season, the schools come together for an award ceremony – our very own Oscars, if you may – appreciating the talent in the Arts in Niagara. This year, at the Cappies 14th annual Gala, our creative Ridleans had the opportunity to perform, present awards, and take some home, of course!
The day started off with a fun rehearsal for the band and cast of Addams Family, leaving to rehearse at the venue at 8:15 in the morning! This was followed by a gathering of all the cast, crew, and critics in 2CB, where we got to see the cast, all decked up in their costumes, and others in their sharp suits and glam dresses. Off we go to Cappies!
The Ridley cast performed their opening number, “When you’re an Addams” from the musical, first in line to open the night, and the crowd erupted with cheers. It was truly a memorable performance, one last chance for our grade 12s to get on stage to represent Ridley. The night that followed was just as special.
First, there were the tech awards. Congratulations to Matthew Hanna ‘26, Tanner Campbell ‘27, and Mason Neudorf ’26 for winning the award for lighting in the show! Addams’ wouldn’t have been nearly as spooky without their fall spots and background lights. Our pit band also took home an award for their dedicated and impressive role in the Winter Musical! As our Ridleans enjoyed performances from other musicals, including Mean Girls, The Wizard of Oz, and so much more… We then moved on to the awards for acting.
Congratulations to Rae Dorah ’25 for winning an award for her role as Achilles in the Fall Play! Spectacular performance! Accompanying Rae, our very own Wonder Twins, Chloe Quach ’25, and Dan Hu ’25 received the award for their role in the play! Wonder Twin Powers, activate!
Let’s not forget about our lead critic, Carsyn Flint ’25! Carsyn had the opportunity to present some awards later in the ceremony, as lead critic. In just her first year, she has made the Cappies such an amazing experience for all other critics. Go Carsyn!
Finally, came the time for the awards for Lead in a Musical. Won’t you know it, that was the cue for our Gomez and Wednesday to strut up to the stage. Congratulations to Alex Bergshoeff ’26, and Shakeela Vahdat ’25 for winning best leads in a musical!
As the night went on, Ridleans cheered and celebrated the Arts season 2025, which ended with a bang! The gala was a night to remember. Congratulations to all the winners and those who were nominated! Until next time!
