Theatre kids are easily spotted. We dance, sing and burst into monologue sporadically and with flair. We are tight-knit, hard working and extremely passionate! There are, however, a few common traits of all theatre kids.
1. We often respond with a thank you five after being told a time until something. Mom calls up the stairs that we have to leave for our family reunion, and of course we call back, "Thank you five!"
2. Men in make-up is perfectly normal to us, even celebrated. One of my best male friends wears more makeup than I do! Even if society has yet to normalize this, it's perfectly normal for theatre kids!
3. We practice our lines at lunch. No, Diana, I'm not talking to myself! (Though I do that too when I'm alone in my dressing room.)
4. Forget a social life! The theatre is your schooling, social time and nap time. All you do is theatre. From socializing with cast mates, to sleeping between scenes, we do it all backstage. A children's show with kids of all ages is the perfect place for after-school homework time!
5. We know all of the places that deliver. When you're in a theatre for 12-hour days, you learn quickly that you need to order food or starve. Some places know you so well that they have your favorite order saved and give you a discount!
6. We don't do math...unless it's to count our lines.
7. Cast T-Shirts are a must. We keep them forever and wear them until they're stained and torn, at which time they turn into a quilts or other keepsakes.
8. We can be extremely patient. We wait for cast lists all the time, and no matter how odd our coping mechanisms are, we know how to wait.
9. Hamilton is bae.
10. We all know "Cats" and "Phantom of the Opera" are great, but we also have a special place for the up and coming, experimental and new. No matter how old or good it is, we support it because theatre is a family.
11. Everything we know about law comes from "Legally Blonde."
12. Old show DVDs are the ultimate tear jerkers. Forget crying over "The Notebook," I will always cry over my sixth grade trainwreck of Julius Caeser because of how awful, amazing and emotional the whole thing was/is.
