On March 7, 2009, Theatre A La Carte’s production of the musical Nine took top honors in the Southeastern Theatre Conference Community Theatre Festival, held in Birmingham, AL.  After winning at the state level, the group advanced to the regional competition, a first for a community theatre from the Panhandle-Big Bend area.  The Southeastern region is the largest in the U.S., encompassing 10 states.  The 2009 festival included 12 productions from 9 states.  In addition to Best Production, Theatre A La Carte also won awards for Outstanding Production Values and two acting awards, given to cast members Rachael Adams and Melinda Melendez. 

A national festival sponsored by the American Association of Community Theatre is held in odd-numbered years, so this regional win earned Theatre A La Carte an invitation to participate in the national festival in Tacoma, WA, in June 2009.