2025 Macdonald Scholarship Winners
County of Fairfax, Virginia
The Robert Ames Alden Theatre
at the McLean Community Center
1234 Ingleside Ave., McLean, Va. 22101
www.aldentheatre.org
Media Contact: Sabrina Anwah
Director of Communications
703-790-0123/TTY: 711
sabrina.anwah@fairfaxcounty.gov
Visit our Newsroom: https://mcleancenter.org/about/news/
Photo (from left): 2025Macdonald Scholarship winners Alex Valencic, Sophia Lin, Caden Peng, Guillermo Javierre Carmona, Ryan Chun and Mia Mortman.
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Monday, May 12, 2025
025-026
McLean Community Center presents 2025 James C. Macdonald Performing Arts Scholarships to six local teen artists
McLean, Va.— The McLean Community Center awarded 2025 James C. Macdonald Performing Arts Scholarships to six local high school students. The annual scholarship competition began with preliminary auditions in February and culminated with a final competition on stage at The Alden on Wednesday, April 17. A division of the McLean Community Center, The Alden Theatre is located at 1234 Ingleside Ave.
The James C. Macdonald Performing Arts Scholarship Competition encourages artistic achievement and promotes study in the arts by high school students who reside or attend school in the McLean district (Small Tax District 1A, Dranesville). Scholarship prizes of $1,200 are awarded to students placing first in each of four categories: Dance, Instrumental Music, Theater and Vocal Music. Second-place winners are awarded $800 and third-place winners receive $400.
This year, the competition was limited to two categories, Vocal Music and Instrumental Music. In 2020, the first place Instrumental Music Award was named in honor of Anita Lamkin, a longtime friend of young musicians and supporter of music performances in McLean.
This year’s winners are:
Vocal Music
First Place: Caden Peng, Sophomore, Langley High School
Second Place: Mia Mortman, Junior, McLean High School
Third Place: Alex Valencic, Junior, McLean High School
Instrumental Music
First Place: Sophia Lin, Senior, Thomas Jefferson High School for Science and Technology
Second Place: Guillermo Javierre Carmona, Junior, McLean High School
Third Place: Ryan Chun, Senior, McLean High School
The competition’s distinguished judges were:
Anne Curley, bassoon performer and double reed teacher and former chair of the Arlington Commission for the Arts. She holds a doctor of music degree from the University of Illinois Urbana/Champaign.
Luke Ratcliffe, an acclaimed pianist, holds a doctoral degree from the Cleveland Institute of Music, and serves on the faculty of Levine School of Music.
Dr. Yong Su Clark, flutist, holds a D.M.A. from the University of Maryland, College Park and an M.M. from the Yale School of Music. He has served as the principal flute for the Baltimore Sinfonietta and the 257th Army National Guard Band.
Jennifer Edelsen has more than 20 years of experience in arts education administration and is the director of Wolf Trap’s Institute for Early Learning through the Arts.
Gustavo Ahualli is renowned for his dramatic portrayals of leading roles across both the standard and contemporary operatic repertoire. He holds a master’s degree in vocal performance from Instituto Superior de Arte del Teatro Colón in Buenos Aires.
For more information on the Macdonald Performing Arts Scholarship Competition, visit aldentheatre.org or call 703-790-0123/TTY: 711.
About The Alden
Built in 1975, the 383-seat Robert Ames Alden Theatre, “The Alden,” is a cultural resource for the citizens of McLean and the Washington Metropolitan area that presents a full professional season of interdisciplinary and high-quality performances, lectures and educational programs for audiences of all ages. The Alden is ADA-compliant and will make arrangements for accommodations. To request this information in an alternate format, call 703-790-0123, TTY: 711, or visit: www.aldentheatre.org.
# # #
The Robert Ames Alden Theatre is a cultural resource for the citizens of McLean that presents high-quality performances, lectures and educational programs for audiences of all ages. The Alden Theatre is ADA-compliant and will make arrangements for accommodations. To request this information in an alternate format, call 711.
