Milford thespians travel to Saginaw for Thespian Festival

Miles Morris, Events Manager

 

Earlier this month, Troupe 4291 of the Milford Theatre Company traveled to Saginaw to take part in the 2016 Michigan thespian festival. Over 1,000 students from all over the state were united for the weekend by their common interest in theatre.

“It’s an amazing weekend. All these kids from all around the state love the same thing,” troupe director Megan Weeks explained. “They can really connect with more people that love what they love.”

The thespians spent most of their time at Saginaw Valley State University, where they participated in workshops led by professionals to hone their skills. A wide variety of workshops were offered, including ones that taught skills in acting, dancing, singing, makeup, technical stage work, stage managing, film acting, and much more.

“It was overwhelming really,” junior Emily Herman stated. “There was something that appealed to everyone.”

Herman was also chosen as a state thespian officer for this years festival. This meant she took on much more responsibility than the average attendee.

“As a whole, being an officer meant making sure everything ran smoothly for the weekend.” Herman explained. “I went to SVSU a night early to help set up the festival, I made the shirts that everyone who went got, I ran the charity events, all of that stuff.” Herman also had to attend several mandatory meetings over the course of the past three months as part of her position as an officer.

Other students had a weekend with much less responsibility, but it was by no means stress-free for seniors auditioning for scholarships. Those auditioning for a musical theatre scholarship prepared a monologue and excerpt of a musical song, while those auditioning for a technical theatre scholarship prepared a speech and visuals that demonstrated their abilities in behind-the-scenes arts. The seniors presented what they had prepared to colleges all across the country.

“It was stressful. It was on my mind the entire time I was there,” senior Nathan Davis said with a laugh. “Getting it all over with was just so relieving.”

Students across other grades could compete in individual events. These events were broken down into several categories, such as monologue, duet scene, duet musical scene, musical scene and more. Students presented their scene to a panel of judges, and their score was given to them on Saturday night at the awards ceremony. The performers also received feedback sheets that highlighted what they had done well and areas of improvement.

With all of this going on, it’s hard to believe the thespians had any time to relax. However, students could watch shows brought from selected schools that were presented in the theatres at SVSU.

To end the incredible weekend, a showcase was presented at the Temple Theatre.

Many thespians displayed  their talent as they performed solos, group scenes, dance numbers, duets, and massive group numbers. The audience loved every second of the solid finish to festival.

Finally came the awards ceremony. Scores were given on individual events and seniors got their scholarship offers. Some were enthused, some were disappointed, but everyone expressed their happiness for anyone who had performed well and gotten their fair credit for it.

Overall, Michigan thespian festival 2016 was an amazing two days full of memories that will last a lifetime. Next year’s festival will be held in Grand Rapids at the DeVos Center.