Booker High School (Sarasota, Florida)

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3201 North Orange Avenue
Sarasota, Florida, 34234-4793
United States

Booker High School is named after a teacher and educational leader in Sarasota's black community, Emma Edwina Booker. Booker moved to Sarasota in 1910 and soon helped start Sarasota Grammar School, for the education of young black children. In 1925 she led a procession of students and teachers from the old school (in Knights of Pythias Hall) to a new school built next to the railroad tracks at Lemon and Thirteenth Street (now Seventh Street) by the Rosenwald Fund.
Booker served as an inspiration to many of her students and was eventually commemorated by having three schools named in her honor: Emma E. Booker Elementary, Booker Middle School, and Booker High School.

The Theatre department of Booker High is renowned in the state as one of the best. Students in the program choose to either specialize in acting or technical work.Actors are required to audition for every show of the program's four-show seasons, and do up to six Shop Hours a period. They take classes in acting, Voice and Music Theory, Dance - Tap, Ballet, Jazz, Broadway, History of Theatre, Directing, Script Analysis and Film acting. Technical students help to build sets, run lights, sound, and manage what goes on backstage, in addition to learning the tricks of the technical trade.

During the 2004-2005 school year, the Theatre department placed first in both the Florida Theatre Conference and the South-Eastern Theatre Conference with their production of Seussical the Musical. The following school year, the Theatre department was the runner-up with the senior class' original play written by H. Scott Keys , The Alchemist, based on the book of the same name. In 2006-2007 school year, the Theatre department took Children Of Eden to the Conference and won the Best Technical Award for their design of the Garden of Eden. In 2007-2008 the senior class took an original work by H. Scott Keys entitled, Ta2.

Booker High School's Theatre Department production of John Lennon and Me is The Florida Theater Conference 2008-2009 Champion. It was directed by Candice Artim. The set design was done by Ken Wiegers. The costumes by Sheryl Wiegers. The lighting design was done by senior Patrick Bedell. Mona Pirnot, a BHS Junior, won Best Actress. In winning Florida, Booker High School had the opportunity to compete in the South-Eastern Theatre Conference in Birmingham Alabama in March 2009.

The Theatre department is also home to 2005 graduate Syesha Mercado, an American Idol Top 3 Finalist. American Juniors winner Danielle White was part of the 2010 graduating class.

Sam Shields, Cornerback for the Green Bay Packers is an alumni of Booker High School.