Last weekend was State Conference for theatres in Nevada. Students had the opportunity to compete, attend workshops, see shows, and meet fellow thespians. State is one of the highlights of the school year for thespians, and though it was my first State Conference I am certainly already looking forward to next year.
Mainstage shows at State are a completely different experience than at your own school. The crowd not only knows how much work was put into the show, but they appreciate it. They want the show to go well because they understand the vulnerability of live performances. I was lucky enough to have been the assistant stage manager for a mainstage show this year. The original run was in October with a remount the week before State. Despite the several performances we had done at our own school, everyone involved agreed that State was our best show performance by far. The audience was giving a huge amount of energy to the cast and the crew that made it not only fun to watch, but a pleasure to do.
Most people go to workshops, attend shows, or watch individual events with people from their school. After all, State is a great opportunity to bond with your own troupe, especially if you're new or there are people there you don’t know very well. Going to workshops and individual events with people you know may also make you more willing to participate or be a little bit silly. But where else is there such a large gathering of thespians from different troupes other than conferences? It is a great opportunity to meet people who you know you have something in common with that you don’t see every day.
On Saturday I made it a point not to latch on to people I knew already. I simply picked workshops that looked interesting and went. This was one of the best choices I made the entire week. This forced me to talk to new people. One of the best parts of State is that it is easy to make friends if that is what you want to do. I can’t count the number of times I started really good conversations with people before even knowing their names. You get to build connections with people, which makes going to the next conference even more exciting.
Getting to talk other thespians is one of the best parts of State. Not all theatres are set up the same way, and it is really interesting to see how much your high school theatre experience differs from so many other peoples’. Just talking to people from a different part of Nevada is crazy because of the differences. There are also a lot of things other schools have implemented that you may hear about and want to bring to your own school. The combined mind of over 700 theatre kids can offer a lot to the way theatre programs are run.
If you have the opportunity to go to State Conference, take it. There is no experience like it and you will not regret it. In fact, when it is over you will find yourself wishing that it didn’t end. If you didn’t, you’ll find yourself wishing you had. Which would you rather face?
