The Sylvan Hills High School Theatre Arts program will showcase current and former students along with community performers in two productions celebrating Arkansas playwright and educator Prentice E. Dupins, Sr.
Mr. Dupins began teaching in 1982 at Sylvan Hills High School in the Pulaski County Special School District. Mr. Dupins was recently recognized as the Sherwood Educator of the Year. He is also this year’s recipient of the Gail Burns Theatre Educator of the Year by the Arkansas State Thespian Society, which is affiliated with the Educational Theatre Association. Mr. Dupins has served in many roles in education, including the North Little Rock School Board and as Associate Metropolitan Supervisor with the District Court during the Little Rock School Desegregation case. In addition to a bachelor’s degree in biological sciences from Arkansas State University, Mr. Dupins has two master’s degrees: Educational Administration (M.Ed) from UA Little Rock and a Master of Fine Arts (MFA) in digital filmmaking from the University of Central Arkansas.
To mark his retirement, the Sylvan Hills Theatre Arts program will host two shows. One More Chance is a two-act comedy drama Dupins wrote for the high school stage in the ‘90s. They will also offer the sequel to the story with a newly written work, One Last Chance.
One More Chance is set in 1977 Central Arkansas and shows a slice of life in a family where two brothers are in love with the same young lady, a mother holds secrets from her past, and a husband fights to keep his family together. What could possibly go wrong in this two-act comedy?
Forty-eight years later, a family member finds himself embroiled in an officer-involved incident, and a family gathering disintegrates into chaos as a community erupts in protest. Can a young generation lead them to a place of peace? This is the story of One Last Chance a two-act drama co-written with DeAndre Lewis, Mr. Dupins’ former student and current teaching colleague. The sequel is set in 2025 Little Rock. Both plays serve as a fundraiser for the department and a celebration of Mr. Dupins’ work in theatre and film.
The cast and crew in the show include current students, alumni, and community actors partnering with the theatre department to provide its students a real-world experience in community theatre.
Performances of One More Chance will be held April 24-26, 2025. Performances of One Last Chance will be held May 1-3, 2025. These performances will be held at the Sylvan Hills High School Performing Arts Center.
To find out more, visit https://sites.google.com/pcssd.org/shhspac/home or contact Jessica Duff, Executive Director of Communications for PCSSD via email (jduff@pcssd.org).