The Minnesota Thespian Conference celebrated its 7th year this year and is doing a wonderful job of continuing growth. Sunday’s part of the 400-student conference was held at East Ridge High School and Monday was held at the beautiful Guthrie Theatre.
After my Valentine's Day flight (yes, I did a candy heart puzzle on the airplane tray table) and an overnight, I arrived at East Ridge
with Mr. Jim Palmarini. I met all 12 of the Minnesota STO who had hilarious fundraisers set up for their Send-A-Troupe. The thespians donated money to whichever officer they wanted to see pied in the face, wear a tutu, and other goofy things. During the day I participated in a play writing workshop and the STO breakout group workshop to meet students from all of the 30 schools represented. During this breakout group we shared best practices from our respective schools and the STO leader created his or her "call and receive". For example, if at any time my group's STO say "Who Am I?", our whole group would chant "24601". By the time that workshop ended it was time for dinner. The festival split into different groups for dinner for a pre-show discussion. The Minnesota All-State show, presented by Dangerous Productions, was Spring Awakening. Due to the mature content, the dinner groups discussed the themes of the show and how to approach the production with an open mind. 
A "Minute to Give It" was held right before curtain and we raised $569.40 for Send-A-Troupe!
I thought the STO and adult staff did a phenomenal job of keeping the kids engaged. Truly, I have never met more consistently-energetic people. The fundraisers, the workshops, the warmups, the Burger King crowns, and the “power greetings” made Sunday of the festival loads of fun! Day one? Check!
On Monday morning I walked from my hotel to the Guthrie Theatre in the beautiful snowfall. That building is absolutely extraordinary, YES I took a selfie on the 9th floor, and I was so happy to hear how involved in arts education the Guthrie is. I met their arts director and she put me on a tour of the whole building after the opening ceremony. After watching some one acts and eating Izzy’s Ice Cream (a MN tradition) with the STO, we had a private meeting to discuss the interviews for the STO candidates. The group interviews were open to all. 
Then came NAPS time. I was SO happy to have 45 students in the room, excited to learn about advocacy. Mr. Jim Palmarini also attended so I took the opportunity to let him tell the workshop about what he does and give his own definition of advocacy. One thespian had some fun with the marker board, check out the pictures below!
Shortly after NAPS I said goodbye to my newly-made friends and headed to the airport for home. Overall, Minnesota was an extremely-energetic state with inspiring levels of commitment and passion.
Thank you Minnesota Thespians!