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By: STO Folarin Oyeleye, Foster High School, Troupe 7961
Hello everyone, we’re back with another weekly blog. Now, I have a question for y’all. When you think about theatre, what is the image that pops up in your head? If you imagined a stage, lights, or blackbox, that's great but . . . Those answers aren’t what I was looking for. What I wanted you to imagine was our emblem for theatre, the sock and buskin (the happy and sad mask). Masques have been an important part of theatre for many decades now, so why not take a look into our theatrical history to gain a better understanding of them? To gain some insight into masques we must first go back to the heart of theatre, ancient greece! Masques were a nifty tool used by actors to not only play a multitude of roles, but to also convey a wide range of emotions. Due to the amphitheater being so spacious, the use of masques allowed for the audience to clearly see the emotions being expressed from the newfound visibility as opposed to the limitations of what an actor could do with just their face. However, this idea truly flourished with the prospect of stylized masques. These helped tell the audience the difference between who was a hero, villain, or other noteworthy character. With commedia dell’arte also incorporating this with notorious characters such as Capitano, Harlequin (go read our pantomime blog if you want more backstory on him) and his various compatriots. As for places throughout history you would see the implementation of masques, one would be at the English Banqueting House. In the 16th century it was very common for masque performances to be put on to celebrate special events. However, the death of Charles the 1st’s death and in fighting soon led to its demise until a later restoration. Now, for just one final tangent, let us look in depth as to the history of the sock and buskin. Dionysus the god of wine was usually depicted as having a masques, so in order to honor him his worshippers birthed masques. They were not only a distinction between the two genres of play (comedies/tragedies) but they were also a separation of human nature. That’s how the symbol came about, but the name’s origin is somewhat different. The sock and buskin names derived from the fact that comedies were identified by a soccus (a piece of footwear akin to a slipper) and a buskin (laced half-boot) for tragedies. Well, there you have it folks. A quick rundown as to the history and meaning of masques in theatre. I hope you had a good read, and as always, I encourage y’all to do further research if this is a subject that piques your interest. Best wishes, Your 2021 Texas State Thespian Officers Source: https://costumes.lovetoknow.com/Theatre_Masks#:~:text=The%20tradition%20of%20theatre%20masks,but%20they%20are%20always%20evocative. https://anhistorianabouttown.com/the-history-of-masques/ https://www.brown.edu/about/history/timeline/sock-and-buskin-theater-company-founded
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By: STO Marisa Berrones, Midland High School, Troupe 3376  STO Campbell Lemons was a part of Troupe 7963, where she worked as an actress. She served on the 2019 board when the theme was “Build” and on the 2020 board when the theme was “Come One, Come All”. She is currently a freshman in college!
Q: What was it that made you want to run to be an STO? A: If I am being completely honest, I had no idea what I was getting myself into. I saw a post on Instagram about applications being open and I just went for it. Q: What is your favorite memory of being an STO? A: My favorite memory was opening Secret Pilgrim gifts at Festival in 2019, it was both hilarious and emotional. It was one of our last moments as a board and extremely memorable, to say the least. Q: What was your favorite musical then? What is it now? A: Then: Newsies Now: Waitress Q: What did you learn as an STO that you still carry with you? A: I learned it truly means to leave it better than you found it, and I try and focus on that in every endeavor. Q: If you could go back, what would you have done differently in high school? A: Focused on the little things that made the big events even better. Q: What would you have done differently in your troupe? A: I would have focused on creating a better environment for the underclassmen. Q: What would you have done differently as an STO? A: I’m not sure I would’ve done anything differently. Everything that happened, both years I was an STO, happened for a reason and lead us to grow together while becoming better leaders and people. Q: If you could send your troupe one message what would it be? A: Stay focused. Would you like to be like Campbell and represent Texas Thespians? Check out how to become an STO here! How to Educate Others During Theatre In Our Schools Month
By: STO Folarin Oyeleye, Foster High School, Troupe 7961 Hello my fellow thespians! This has been quite the Theatre In Our Schools Month hasn’t it? This has been a great learning opportunity for others and I’m sure you want to share your knowledge with others. So today, I’m gonna teach you about the last letter of our S.A.U.C.E acronym: educate. So, education can mean a multitude of things. For some, it means to expand upon their own knowledge , and for others it means to act as a facilitator for learning of a particular subject. First, I’m going to tell you how to educate yourself, so that way you have the necessary tools to educate others. Step 1- One of the best ways to start educating yourself is by asking questions. When you formulate questions you filter between what you want to know vs what you already know, so this grants a good idea of where to steer future endeavors. You can ask questions to your directors or you could do some research on your own. But remember to cross reference your info to make sure you’re not getting incorrect facts. Step 2- Now that we know how to educate ourselves, let’s take a look at how to educate others. The most important part of teaching others is to be able to adapt to how other people learn. This way it doesn’t feel like you’re bombarding them with information. Next, you need to be constantly engaging with your cohort to make sure they’re keeping up with you. This is because sometimes the people you educate aren’t necessarily willing to learn, so you’ll need to put extra effort into working with them. The abilities and resilience gained through each step will soon help you learn to educate others about anything you’re passionate about. It’s important to keep educating others about theatre so that way they continue to understand our purpose, and how that purpose makes us essential to the community. It is now with great pleasure that I can say you have now completed the last lesson in your S.A.U.C.E acronyms. I hope you’ve enjoyed all we’ve taught, and can find the proper scenarios to apply these tactics. Happy Theatre In Our Schools Month, Your 2021 Texas State Thespian Officers By: STO Gentry Phillips, Springtown High School, Troupe 1494
Hope you all have been having a fun, safe, and productive Theatre In Our Schools Month! This week on the blog we are going to go over the next two letters of S.A.U.C.E: U standing for Understand and C standing for connect! Let's dive into how these topics are important and why they are vital not only in this month, but in general life as well. Let's start with Understand! When you’re cast in a show, what is the first job you try to accomplish? You focus on understanding your script, whether that be in an acting or technical sense. You want to get a good grasp on what your show is about so you know how to execute it well. The same type of analysis comes into play during TIOSM! You need to understand why you are advocating for theatre and why it is important to you personally and how it affects your community. When you have a good understanding of the facts, statistics, and your own personal opinions, you are better prepared to talk to others about it. When you understand what you’re talking about it is easier to teach others! Understanding could also help with the next letter of S.A.U.C.E., which is C for connect. Connecting and networking with others is so vital to advocacy. Big change comes from large groups of people, and while you are more than capable of making those changes happen it’s nice to have some helping hands. By connecting with others and understanding where they are coming from, no goal is too large for you to achieve. Working together makes the job easier, quicker, and a lot more fun! But, who should I reach out to and connect with? How do we all come to a similar understanding of each other and what we are trying to accomplish? Both of those are great questions. You should connect to people who have similar goals and interests. For example, say you’re trying to have your principal declare March as Theate In Our Schools Month for your high school. To achieve this, it would be beneficial to you to get together members of your theatre troupe or company to work together to get this done. By communicating and listening, we understand each other very well. Coming up with a common goal and working as a team makes sure that what you set out to do will indeed happen! You’ve got this! Your 2021 Texas State Thespian Officers By: STO Marisa Berrones, Troupe 3376, Midland High School
Let's start off Theatre In Our Schools Month by going through the first two letters of S.A.U.C.E.: Social Media and Advocacy! We use social media for many hours each day, so it’s only fitting that we use it to our advantage. Let us explain why and how Advocacy and Social Media are so important to our cause. WHY DO WE ADVOCATE FOR THEATRE IN OUR SCHOOLS MONTH? As a Texas Thespian it is our job to teach people about theatre and how it benefits our communities. Teaching about theatre can create better opportunities for students who may not have as many chances to do fine arts in middle school and high school. Having Theatre In Our Schools Month declared in cities across Texas allows for a better spread of that information, because we know not every school has a TIOSM. Advocating for March to be declared TIOSM may seem like a job for an STO, but everyone can do it! HOW CAN WE ADVOCATE FOR THEATRE IN OUR SCHOOLS MONTH? There are many ways to advocate for your city to declare Theatre In Our Schools Month such as, emailing your superintendent or mayor or meeting with your principal. One of the easiest ways to advocate, and get others to advocate with you, is by using social media! In this day and age most teens use some form of social media, which makes advocacy posts much more likely to be liked, commented on, or reposted. With that, elected officials and people of importance are also more likely to stumble across your online advocating. If you are new to advocacy and uncertain about making your own posts, the Texas Thespians Instagram page is always a great place to start! You can repost and share the many Theatre In Our Schools Month posts, while also learning about how to be a better advocate! Anything can be accomplished using apps like Instagram, Twitter, or Facebook. These are all great resources to spread the word about TIOSM and many other interesting things about your department or fine arts program! While this all might seem a little daunting or scary, the STO’s have full faith that you can help us in our cause of getting Theatre In Our Schools Month declared state wide! After all, this important art should be shared with everyone across all four corners of Texas. In fact, it should be shared across all four corners of the world! Keep busy advocating, Your 2021 Texas State Thespian Officers By: STO Gentry Phillips, Springtown High School, Troupe 1494
It’s the time of year every thespian looks forward to … it’s Theatre In Our Schools Month! Theatre In Our Schools Month is a time to celebrate, and most importantly advocate, for the arts all around our state. It is a time to reach out and spread the word on why theatre is so important! We can each do that by using S.A.U.C.E., which is an acronym used to describe just what TIOSM is all about. We will be going further into what each letter stands for, but for now I’ll give you the preview. S stands for Social Media! Social media is a great way to connect with those around you. You can connect to people in your troupes or the troupes around you in order to celebrate and maybe even collectively get TIOSM declared for your city! A stands for Advocacy! Advocacy is a major part of Theatre In Our Schools Month. By advocating for theatre we can spread the word about how theatre has changed our lives and bettered our communities! U stands for Understand! In order to advocate we must understand why we are advocating in the first place. Understanding our cause better sets up the understanding for the people we are trying to reach. C stands for Connect! We need to connect with our peers and representatives in order to get the job done. By connecting and creating relationships we are able to make changes not only in March, but for months and years to come. E stands for Educate! To make a good chase to our representatives as to why theatre is important we need to know the facts. Educating ourselves and those around us is incredibly vital to advocating. This month is incredibly important and incredibly influential to theatre everywhere. Now go out there and advocate, collaborate, and educate! Happy TIOSM Texas Thespians, Your 2021 Texas State Thespian Officers By: STO Folarin Oyeleye, Foster High School, Troupe 7961
Hello Hello Hello! Welcome back to another weekly blog thespians. Today we have something special for you. We have taken the time to create our very own buzzfeed quiz! If you click the link below you'll be able to go through a series of questions to see which STO matches you best. Along with a full run down on what that means. Hope you have fun, and make sure to share your results with us in the comments and share the link! https://www.buzzfeed.com/texasthespians/which-2021-2022-texas-sto-are-you-4izxnu33hn?utm_source=dynamic&utm_campaign=bfsharecopy Catch you on the flipside, Your 2021 Texas State Thespian Officers By: STO Folarin Oyeleye, Foster High School, Troupe 7961
As actors, I’m sure we’ve all had to pantomime at one point. Whether it be because we forgot to bring a prop on or because we never had it to begin with, this type of performance is quite notable. Using only gestures or similar motions the art of pantomime was born. Pantomime was born in Commedia dell’Arte’. It was a type of entertainment in 16th century Italy that focused on using the body and music to tell stories. Soon these stories would begin to take place on stage in the 18th century. Some notable characters include: Harlequin, Scaramouche, and Pantaloon. Their stories were brought to life on London stages, all without speech, but with music. Harlequin was one of the most popular characters at the time. Being portrayed as a cunning merchant who wielded a magic bat, he was certainly quite loved by the public. It was then in 1732 when John Rich ( a famous Harlequin actor) built the Covent Garden Theatre. Even more changes would come about as we entered the 1840’s and the Theatres Act was lifted. This meant that theatres didn’t need a royal patent if they wanted to produce a play with dialogue. This even sparked some of its later popularity towards the end of the century amongst families. With 5 hour long productions opening up on boxing day, this became a form of entertainment that could capture the hearts of citizens on different levels. Pantomime has been a big part of theatre. Stemming from times when words were not available, they innovated and found new ways to keep telling stories. It’s honestly amazing seeing how this style of performance has survived for about 500 years. It’s definitely been fun seeing where it started, and it’s really interesting to see how it’ll continue to evolve. If this blog piqued your interest feel free to do some more research of your own! I’ll even help and provide a link down below. As always, thanks for reading! Best wishes, Your 2021 Texas State Thespian Officers Source: https://www.vam.ac.uk/articles/the-story-of-pantomime#:~:text=Pantomime%20has%20its%20roots%20in,cast%20of%20mischievous%20stock%20characters.&text=Harlequinades%20were%20mimed%20with%20music,pantomime%20for%20around%20100%20years. By: STO Folarin Oyeleye, Foster High School, Troupe 7961
Ahhh, Valentine's day. A day to celebrate and appreciate loved one’s, significant others, and even focus on yourself. Being able to put a smile on someone’s face by giving them chocolate, or even words of affirmation is surely one of the best feelings. So, it’s now your turn to help out by writing some fun letters, poems, or drawing… who knows what! Don’t worry, I’ve got some templates to help you out. Letter: Dear BLANK, I just wanted to let you know that I really appreciate you. You’re such an (adjective ending in ing) person, so I thought it only right to tell you. We should buy each other some Texas Thespians merch to spoil ourselves. I just know you’re going to (verb) when you see it! -Sincerely, BLANK Poem: Nothing says I love you more than a good ole poem. How about we try our hands at a haiku? A haiku works as such: Five syllables in the 1st and 3rd line, and 7 syllables in the 2nd. Here’s an example one, feel free to do your own! You are amazing But Dusty is way cooler Duck supremacy Drawing: If you’re feeling a little artsy then you could sketch them something they like, or find funny. However, if you’re looking for something simple, a well drawn heart never hurt anyone. Hope that you have a wonderful valentine’s day. Have fun, eat as much chocolate as you want, and make sure to share your own examples with us in the comments! With lots of love, Your 2021 Texas State Thespian Officers By: STO Marisa Berrones, Midland High School, Troupe 3376  STO Elisa Pedraza Sanchez was a part of Troupe 5872, where she worked as a tech member and as an actress. She served on the 2020 board when the theme was “Come One, Come All”. She is currently a freshman in college! Q: What was it that made you want to run to be an STO? A: Having the opportunity to advocate for the arts Q: What is your favorite memory of being an STO? A: My favorite memory of being an STO was the Soctober meeting, when we finally got to meet each other! Q: What was your favorite musical then? What is it now? A: My favorite musical was Phantom of the Opera, it still is! Q: What did you learn as an STO that you still carry with you? A: I learned teamwork and how to rely on my team members. Q: If you could go back, what would you have done differently in high school? A: I would have taken more AP classes. Q: What would you have done differently in your troupe? A: I would’ve liked to be more involved in social media. Q: What would you have done differently as an STO? A: Nothing. As the 2020 board, we truly did our best to adapt to circumstances. I wish we could’ve had camp or at least another opportunity to say goodbye to everyone in person. Q: If you could send your troupe one message what would it be? A: Thank you for all the love and lessons you have taught me. I miss you already. Would you like to be like Elisa and represent Texas Thespians? Check out how to become an STO here! |
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