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  • 1.  Travel to Indiana in June

    Posted 01-07-2020 10:45
    Hello!
    We just got back from an amazing first-time experience at the PA State Convention. My kids can't wait to go to Indiana in June. I am hoping someone might be able to offer some guidance about transportation. If we have less than 10 kids interested, we'll probably fly, but it is more likely we will want to charter a bus. However, we are a small school, and I would say we would have 20 kids maximum who would want to travel to Indiana. Does anyone have any information on smaller charters? Our ride will be about 13 hours...what's the best way to do it? Leave on Sunday and stay overnight somewhere along the way? Do we need to hire two drivers to travel straight through?  What about coming home? Do we charter a separate bus?  Any and all information is helpful! Thank you!

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    Micki McMillan
    Theatre Department Chair
    Solebury School
    New Hope, PA
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  • 2.  RE: Travel to Indiana in June

    Posted 01-07-2020 12:53
    Yay! We have travelled for years to Lincoln, so glad that it is back home again in Indiana. We only have a two hour drive and we are using Free Enterprises. We have used them for years. They are great and very affordable. The link to their website is below. ​

    https://www.travelfe.com/

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    Crit Fisher
    Lighting/Sound Designer
    New Albany High School
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    Original Message


  • 3.  RE: Travel to Indiana in June

    Posted 01-08-2020 11:49
    We travel from Louisiana and use Hotard Charter bus. We have a 15-hour drive, and we leave on Sunday late afternoon around 4 p.m. This way we are able to sleep through most of the drive. We usually wake up in Kansas City for breakfast and then only have a few hours to arrive in Lincoln. It will be a little different this year since ITF is in Indiana and it will be a shorter drive, but we will do something similar. We have two bus drivers so we stop at some point in the night for them to switch. The bus company dictates that.

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    Kristi Jacobs-Stanley
    Louisiana Co-Chapter Director
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    Original Message


  • 4.  RE: Travel to Indiana in June

    Posted 01-08-2020 13:01
    Hi, Micki -

    I am so glad that you had a great weekend at the PA conference!  I'm sorry that I didn't get a chance to meet you in person (I spent much of my time doing paperwork and running Thespys events).  My kids had a blast also!

    I have seen a few emails flying around with some other PA friends - it is possible that there could be a PA "shared bus" that you could join.  We did this about 2-3 years ago to Nebraska, and the bus started in the Philly area, and picked up folks along the PA turnpike, essentially.    Keep an eye on your email - I suspect that we'll hear more soon.   I'm in Lancaster County - and it's about 9.5 hours to the university, so we'll definitely drive rather than fly.   With a small group, my district has vans that we can use (for free - and they reimburse for gas!) - so that will likely be how my group travels and the adults will share the driving responsibilities.  Can't beat free - so even a shared bus expense would be more out-of-pocket for my kids, which will be a major factor in our decision.

    But Festival is SO worth the trip!

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    Melissa Mintzer
    Willow Street PA
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    Original Message


  • 5.  RE: Travel to Indiana in June

    Posted 01-08-2020 14:27
    Hi Micki!
    I am so excited to hear you and your students had such a great experience in PA!  You will LOVE the festival in June!  I am somewhat of a neighbor in PA, just down Rt. 309 a few miles.  A few of us are definitely planning to get together to charter a bus. There should be some emails starting around the state very soon. We'll talk about timing in the email, but lately most of the PA folks have been arriving on Sunday to make certain we are there and ready to go with all of our events and performances.  I have been attending since the mid 70's as a student and then as a director.  I have literally done planes, trains and automobiles...and buses!  Welcome to the PA family and hopefully we can all travel together!

    Marlene Thornton
    Springfield Township HS
    Troupe 1154

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    Marlene Thornton
    Erdenheim PA
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    Original Message


  • 6.  RE: Travel to Indiana in June

    Posted 01-08-2020 15:04
    Thank you, my PA friends! Yes! Sharing a coach bus would be great! Registration is coming up, and I would love to be able to give my students a ballpark total in terms of cost for the festival, so any info is helpful. Thanks so much for including us!

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    [Micki] [McMillan]
    [Theatre Department Chair]
    [Solebury School]
    [New Hope] [PA]
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    Original Message


  • 7.  RE: Travel to Indiana in June

    Posted 01-08-2020 18:01
    Jumping on the "PA Thespians is Fab" train, and adding @Jasmine Bucher-- I know she's working on figuring out how to get her kids to Indiana this summer.​​

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    Rosemary Bucher
    Educational Theatre Licensing Coordinator
    Samuel French, a Concord Theatricals Company
    New York, NY
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    Original Message


  • 8.  RE: Travel to Indiana in June

    Posted 01-09-2020 10:26
    Agreed! This weekend was absolutely incredible, and my students are jazzed to make the trip to Indiana. Please keep us in the loop, and I'll do the same back. I anticipate we'll have a healthy sized group going.

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    Jasmine Bucher
    Musical Director
    Palmyra Area High School
    Palmyra PA
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    Original Message


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