The Arkansas High School Senior Destination Imagination (DI) Team Hamilton is Just Ok recently competed in the 22nd Annual Destination Imagination Global Finals in Kansas City, MO, and placed 2nd in the Fine Arts Secondary Level Challenge. Team members are seniors Tripp Wilson, Mariah Huntley, Mia Hartley, Haylee Bustin, and Kloe Witt.
Approximately 450 teams competed from 21 different states and several different counties including Korea, Brazil, Pakistan, and Poland. It was the first in-person Global Finals competition since 2019.
DI is a creative problem-solving competition. Students competed in six different areas: technical, engineering, scientific, fine arts, improvisation, and service learning, in three levels elementary, middle, and secondary (HS/University). Each challenge requires teams to research elements in their specific area and integrate that research into an 8-minute skit that includes props, scenery, and costumes created by the team. This year’s Fine Arts Challenge was called Tricky Tales. Teams had to research tricksters and how they are portrayed in literature, movies, theater, and mythology and create a skit about a Trickster caught in a tricky situation. They had to design and perform an onstage costume change that used technical methods and had a significant impact on the outcome of the story and included an illusion that was perceived wrongly at the beginning of the story. The Arkansas High team created a real-life working escape room on stage that included puzzles, physical obstacles, hidden doors/comparts, and chain reactions set up on Hades to find the one true Trickster who could help him defeat Hercules.
During the competition, the AHS team was also chosen to be the Arkansas State Flag Bearers at the Welcome/Opening Ceremonies and attended the Global Finals Graduation Ceremony where they became official DI Alumni.
Pictured: top row to bottom row, left to right: Tripp Wilson, Mariah Huntley, Mia Hartley, Haylee Bustin, and Kloe Witt.
