The Palm Awards: RGV’s Biggest Theatre Award Show
Story by Jordynn Garza
Edited by Abigail Vela and Nina Alegre
The crowd was silent, sitting at the edge of our seats. Anticipation was hanging low in the air, and the announcer’s voice boomed into the packed room. “Best Set Design,” a pause in the air as he spoke again, “McAllen Rowe.” We jumped from our seats, cheering and celebrating. A feeling of pride and accomplishment mixed within me, so happy for my whole theatre trope.
It makes me delighted that other students continue to feel that moment now. That their hard work is recognized in front of all their peers and in a space that encourages students to celebrate their passions.
From its first show in 2018, The Palm Awards has aimed to “foster the love of the arts locally by awarding recognition and offering support to the high school theatre community in the Rio Grande Valley.”
The Palm Awards actively promote high school theatre productions and showcase previous award winners who have gone on to pursue theatre outside of high school. They are creating a space where young students can be recognized by their community and where students can visibly see how big they can take their dreams.
Bo, the first winner of the Best Actress in a Musical award in 2018 and the 2019 winner, has continued this passion even now. They are “developing ideas for live original music performances: a solo acoustic set and a four-piece hard rock band.” The Palm Awards has positively impacted student relationships with theatre and music outside of school, giving them a strong push to chase their passions in life.
Participating in the first-ever Palm Awards was an incredible experience. I remember entering the building, walking the red carpet with my friends and classmates, and feeling the thrill of excitement dance in my chest as we took our seats in the auditorium of the McAllen Performing Arts Center.
Suddenly, everything felt so much bigger than me. Seeing classmates and other schools perform center stage on such a grand scale is a feeling that stays with you for a lifetime.
Hearing Nikki Rowe High School win the Best Technical Crew and Best Set Design award in a play for “The Game’s Afoot” was an unforgettable memory. All the hard work of building the set, late nights of practice, and performing our hearts out paid off in that moment.
On top of the fact that these awards are a place of growth for students, they are also an amazing form of documentation of the high school programs. Students can look back at the videos on The Palm Awards’ YouTube page and see exactly how it went—a glimpse into that moment of their lives again.
Over 25 participating high schools with more than 1,500 students compete at The Palm Awards annually. The turnout is so impressive partly due to the excitement from the event itself and the fact that the shows are critiqued and judged by judges from esteemed local and national universities.
To support even more young students, The Palm Awards gives its winners $25,000 in scholarship money each year. Programs such as this one impact a student’s career and showcase their talent to the universities that attend and its participants. Community building begins with youth programs, and The Palm Awards is a perfect example that blends fun with hard work.
Another way that The Palm Awards show students how far they can take theatre is by bringing in actors and actresses to speak to the students either in person or in video messages.
In 2023, The Palm Awards had Cristela Alonzo, the first Latina to create, write, and star in her own network sitcom, host the award show and share her experiences. Having stars from the Valley speak to the students is a way to inspire them and help them see for themselves that they can do anything they want with time, effort and dedication.
The Palm Awards have blossomed into an excellent resource for promotion, documentation and community building. Looking back at the first Palm Awards show, it was evident that they took great care in creating an enjoyable experience for students. Now we see The Palm Awards cementing themselves into the position of the RGV’s biggest theatre award show by expanding their content from highlight reels and recordings of the show to: “Get to know the actor or actress” videos and individual/group performance videos.
This shift in content solidifies the fact that the focus of the award show is the students. It places the students and schools at the forefront of the entire event, even when the event is not taking place. Promoting students during the event’s off-season is one of the best parts of the show because for the students theatre is their life. It is year-round and does not stop after the awards end. They have show after show and dedicate late nights, weekends and their own free time to their performances.
That said, the 7th Annual Palm Awards Nominations Announcement Ceremony occurred this past Thursday and was live-streamed on Telemundo 40. Saint Joseph Academy in Brownsville’s students gave a stellar performance during the ceremony.
Whether on stage or off stage, students in the cast and crew of high schools around the RGV are finally getting the recognition they deserve. The Palm Awards are a leading force in showing off the Valley’s talents to the rest of the world. For anyone pursuing theatre, all the world is their stage, and for young students in the RGV, that stage has gotten a whole lot bigger.
The 2025 Palm Awards will take place on Wednesday, May 7. Ticket sales to be announced soon!
