Last week, I had the privilege to go to the annual thespian conference in Wichita, along with three other students and our drama teacher, Jason Hagg. I came home with several regrets, but a large amount of my regret came from the fact that I did not bring popcorn. Theater kids can be strange, but when they are put together their collective strangeness becomes truly magnificent.

With the pretense that I was writing a news story, I was able to have a camera and note pad on my person at all times throughout the week. It made for some very entertaining journalism.

The people aside, the thespian conference brings a very unique opportunity to a lot of kids that may or may not be interested in pursuing theater as a career. There are workshops offered throughout the day that range from how to write a play to how to audition for movies. There were also art classes that showcase the talents of artists of whom can turn a five by seven inch picture into a 20 by 10 foot backdrop.

The workshops are always hosted by a charismatic teacher who has been in their field for a very long time. Notable workshop teachers that I went to included Julie Danielson, a former casting employee on broadway, and Jonathon Dorf, who wrote this year’s school play, A Locker Next to Mine.

One of the largest workshops in the convention is their sabre fighting class, which teaches students how to properly handle swords when given a script that requires fencing, like Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet.

In the words of Matt Seck, a Blue Valley North high school thespian, “It’s always great to learn how to swing a sword at your friends.”

In addition to the workshops, students can see one-act plays performed by other schools, they can audition for a panel composed of 35 colleges with fine arts program, including Kansas University, Oklahoma University and Kansas State University.

However, most impressive are the large group events that involve the whole convention. High schools across the state put on shows that have been adjudicated by the convention board. These shows are the most impressive school sponsored high school shows you can find. One show, put on by Blue Valley Northwest High School, Deathtrap, caused a sensation and made several audience members gasp in surprise more than once.

However, one of the most appreciated things about the conference is the socialization of students during the classes, the events, the shows. Every person there has like-minded interests and aspirations, and as a result it is fairly easy to find friends. I found myself talking to a student from an Olathe school for upwards of an hour and a half.

It makes for a fantastic people watching opportunity, and I’m glad I brought a camera along for the trip. All in all, there is no doubt that the thespian conference is a very rare place, filled with individualism and art. It’s a large contrast to my daily surroundings.