South Country High School senior Emma Butler, a talented actress and singer, has been recognized with an award of merit as part of the Long Island Arts Alliance’s annual Scholar-Artist Awards. She was one of 20 students from across Long Island to be selected for the honor after being nominated by her school.

To qualify, Butler had to submit a video recording of a song and a monologue, as well as an essay. She sang “A Part of That” from the musical “The Last Five Years” and performed a monologue from the musical “Now. Here. This.” Both the song and the monologue, she said, resonated with her. For her essay, she wrote about how the arts have enriched her life.

“It wasn’t difficult to write about the arts in my life,” Butler said. “Theater has been a part of me since my first production in the fifth grade.”

Since she first took the stage, she has continued to perform in annual school productions and was recently cast in her first professional show at the Studio Theater of Long Island. She will be performing in the chorus in a production of “Aida.”

“I love theater,” she said. “I love the sense of camaraderie and performing on stage after all the hard work we put in.”

When not performing, Butler can be found reading at her local library, where she recently participated in a Battle of the Books program. She is also president of her school’s National Honor Society and a member of the Tri-M Music Honor Society.

She plans to study psychology in college.