The One Act competition piece for 2002 was a French comedy from Moliere called 'A Doctor In Spite of Himself.' This play was a drastic change from the dramas performed in the recent past. It provided the students a chance to develop their acting skills on a more humorous level.

The competition season started off with a fourth-place finish and a superior rating at Keya Paha in the Niobrara Valley Conference Contest. The judges recognized Will Dougherty and Laura Cameron as Outstanding Performers.

On Dec. 3, St. Mary's hosted the D1-4 district contest. In addition to St. Mary's, the other schools that performed were Elgin Pope John, Elgin, Rock County, Stuart, Spencer-Naper, and Orchard. In a close decision, 'A Doctor In Spite of Himself' was crowned district champions and won a place in the State competition. Three actors were honored with Outstanding Performance awards: Kathryn Fuchser, Laura Cameron, and Will Dougherty.

In the State contest at Kearney, the production placed fourth once again. The play achieved a superior rating and was ranked first by one of the judges who was very impressed with the students' work on this challenging piece. Will Dougherty and Laura Cameron were honored as Outstanding Performers, which is equivalent to All-State awards.

The cast was comprised of: Kylie Ludemann, Will Dougherty, Kathryn Fuchser, Christina Reynoldson, Laura Cameron, Kevin Ohri, Brooke Lindhorst, Sarah Novak, Katie Fletcher, Emily Dugan, Matt McCarville, Jacqueline Earley, Lyle Berryman, and Anne Kersenbrock. The crew included: Kareena Nichols, Falycia Wagenaar, Kayla Nichols, Serenity Butterfield, Tom Fletcher, Nick Welding, Courtney Petersen, Rachael Gray, Heather Sukup, Jordon Anderson, Aaron Jeffrey, Ashtin Soukup, Kara Garman, Gina Hoesing, Megan Davis, and Liz Willis. Jennifer Goettertz and Merri Schneider were the directors. JoLynn Cameron once again did an excellent job with the costumes.