The play's been over for months but Heritage High's "Hairspray" is still earning applause.

The Brentwood school's musical recently danced away with several wins from the Bay Area High School Musical Theatre Stage Top Honors.

The energetic and talented drama department received five awards, the most of any of the nominated schools.

The winners were Laurel Jones for featured actress; Stacey Dempsey for choreography; Tammy Vance for costume design; Steve Ernest for student orchestra; and Chris Fallows for direction.

"I am proud of our cast, crew, band and my adult team for their tireless efforts and for the magic they create," said Fallows, the school's theater director. "We were competing with many of the elite private and public school theater programs in the region."

In May, the drama group learned it had been nominated for 14 out of the 18 categories, which tied for the most nods.

Other nominees included:

Zinah Abraha for best lead actress; Marcus Lance for best lead actor; best overall production; Cassie Demsher for best supporting actress; Sue Stuart for musical direction; Hillary Pedrotti for scenic design; Pedrotti, Abbey Straus and Paige Velasco for best hair/makeup; singers from the Council for best chorus; and Abbey Strauss for student achievement in technical theater.

Modeled after Broadway's Tony Awards, the event was held in San Jose.

"I already can't wait for next year," said

UNDER THE SEA: School and city officials gathered for the dedication of Liberty High's student-created underwater Delta mural at King's Park in Brentwood.

The joint efforts of Liberty Arts and Humanities Academy staff, community, Brentwood City Council and the Art Commission, the event included a ribbon cutting by Mayor Bob Taylor.

Taylor said he hoped "this was only the beginning of the student artwork that will enhance the beauty of Brentwood," according to a news release.

Academy teachers Katie Collins and Lloyd Cornwell had a long list of contributors to thank.

LUHSD has supported academy programs at Liberty, Freedom and Heritage high schools for nearly 20 years, providing directed career study for students in various fields. Liberty's Art Academy will receive almost $100,000 over two years from the California Department of Education's Partnership grant program, which supports the Art and Humanities Academy. The city of Brentwood provided additional funding for the mural.

"The city has been very helpful with facilitating the creative process and protecting the artwork from graffiti and vandalism," said the district's Sarah Singrin.

Students contributing to the project were Ismael Alvarez, Jakky Anstine, Danielle Bowersmith, Justin Brown, Natalie Colmenares, Teresa DeFrates, Rachel Dirk, Michelle Duarte, Shannon Fickling, Lorena Garcia, Doug Gil, Anthony Green, Debbie Love, Lauren Murphy, Michael Najera, Ana Nunag, Cassie Oseguera, Riley Ruano, Samantha Scott, DJ Trammell, Omar Valasquez, Lei Wei and Rebecca Wood. Their names are on a plaque at the entrance of the tunnel.

School Bell is written by Trine Gallegos. Contact her at trineg@att.net. If you have news you'd like to share in the column, contact her at trineg@att.net. You can also reach Judith Prieve at jprieve@bayareanewsgroup.com