The St. Pius X Thespian Troupe 9021 went to the Georgia Thespian Conference (ThesCon) on February 1-3 in Columbus. ThesCon is an opportunity for thespians across Georgia to meet each other and share their craft. The conference mainly consists of workshops and performances, and there’s also the opportunity for upperclassmen to audition for college theater programs and scholarships.
“It was it was pretty nerve racking,” Yates said about the scholarship auditions, which included a 90-second monologue and a signing for a panel of colleges. “It was a really tedious thing to do, but it was really interesting.”
Seniors Sloane Sinkule and Amelia Gerdes auditioned for entrance into college theater programs and received 21 and 18 college callbacks, respectively.
Yates was also selected for one of the lead roles in the conference-opening performance. The show included students from the whole state, so getting the whole cast together for rehearsals was challenging.
“We had to drive down to Warner Robins every Saturday and Sunday for a few months, and we would rehearse from 9 to 4 and then leave and come back. Then in January, we had to stay overnight,” Yates explained.
In the past, Logan Yates has also auditioned for college programs. This his year he auditioned for scholarships instead. He said that those applying have to perform a 90-second monologue and sing a song in front of a panel of colleges.
Thespians also had the chance to participate in various competitions, such as improv. Five people from each school signed up to be on one of 13 teams. After several elimination rounds, participants competed on the main stage in front of everyone. Junior Libbie Brownlow’s team won second place, and senior Molly Pitra’s placed third.
“I’m good friends with everyone on my team now,” Brownlow said. “It’s just it’s a really fun environment, and we’re just really lucky that we get to go on with every year.”
Yates agreed, saying, “[ThesCon] is such a fun thing to do because you meet people that you never think you’d ever meet.”
You can see Thespain Troupe 9021 in action February 29-March 3 for the spring musical, “The Little Mermaid.”
