On January 9, Thespian Troupe 7730, better known as Spring Hill High School, boarded a bus bound for Wichita. The 30 people in attendance would go to different workshops throughout the day, then attend a performance each evening.

“This is [the high school’s] eighth year [going] to the conference. This is one of the highlights of being a Thespian, or being close to being a Thespian, getting to come down and do this really awesome theatre conference and festival; you get to be with like-minded people, go to countless workshops run by professionals from all across the country,” said Brett Buffum, theatre director. 

The experience is always great for the students, too.

“I always look forward to it, it’s been very fun…it’s just an amazing experience,” said Brandon Green, 12.

Every year, students who have shown a passionate interest in theatre are invited, even if they may not be thespians yet.

“[It’s fun because] all my friends are here, and I get to do something that I really like,” said Josef Roeder, 10.

The workshops that are offered there are extremely diverse.

“[I get to] learn stuff I never would’ve gotten to learn at Spring Hill High School, stuff like learning hip-hop dance moves that you never would’ve learned from Mr. Buffum, or learning about things that you’ve never heard of before,” said Green.

The workshops really pushes people to get out of their comfort zone.

“[I took] swing dancing and hip-hop Shakespeare writing, where we wrote Shakespeare sonnets but it was taught to us using hip-hop,” said Roeder.

While people may think it’s all fun and games at a theatre conference, it does require some hard work.

“You get out of it what you put into it. Those that want to come down here and do a lot of different types of workshops and really stretch out, they’re gonna walk back with a lot of new skills,” said Buffum.

After this experience, theatre students come back closer to each other, and more knowledgeable about the vast world of performance, tech, and everything in between.