Open Forum

This is the second time my troope has been asked to set up a both for a community event.  We are very excited, but we are having a hard time coming up with ideas.  Last year we sold baked goods.  Does anyone have any other ideas for what a troupe could sell/do at a booth?  

Thank You! 

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Kayla Wilson
Hillsboro OH
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Face painting is always profitable! Or little carnival games with prizes for the kiddos. Sticker station. Lollipop tree. Duck pond. You could sell used books. Tattoos.

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Carolyn Little
High School English Teacher
Toms River Board of Education
Beachwood NJ
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Original Message:
Sent: 9/14/2016 7:13:54 AM
From: kwilson@hcs-k12.org
Subject: ITS Booth

This is the second time my troope has been asked to set up a both for a community event.  We are very excited, but we are having a hard time coming up with ideas.  Last year we sold baked goods.  Does anyone have any other ideas for what a troupe could sell/do at a booth?  

Thank You! 

------------------------------
Kayla Wilson
Hillsboro OH
------------------------------

Stay with me on this, okay! 

We have an outdoor multicultural festival every August in town and for the past ten years we have had a booth and all we do is make things out of newspaper, tape, and markers.  Parents love it because their kids take home a free souvenir from the festival.  

We make hats (some are folded pirate hats, some are free-style where you place a sheet of newspaper on the head, wrap tape around the circumference of the head and then roll and scrunch up the paper to make cute hats...I know, it sounds strange, but just try it one day!)  We make bows for the hair or wrist, or whatever, but our most popular items are the swords and daggers we make.  The kids go crazy for those.  We have markers out for them to decorate their paper creations if they want.  Most just run off with them to play!  We do state the rules that swords can only be used to hit trees, not humans, and if I see a child hitting another, I will go and nicely take them away.)  

Our local paper gives us old bundles of paper that they have yet to recycle and masking tape isn't that expensive.  

I can give you more details and try to find pictures for you if you'd like to learn more!

My best!

Carolyn

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Carolyn Cork Greer
Owensboro KY

Original Message:
Sent: 09-14-2016 07:13
From: Kayla Wilson
Subject: ITS Booth

This is the second time my troope has been asked to set up a both for a community event.  We are very excited, but we are having a hard time coming up with ideas.  Last year we sold baked goods.  Does anyone have any other ideas for what a troupe could sell/do at a booth?  

Thank You! 

------------------------------
Kayla Wilson
Hillsboro OH
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Will you please share this information with me? My troupe has been invited to spend an hour or so with early elementary students in an open house forum, and your ideas seem perfect for our needs!

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Makala Witten
Christiansburg VA

Original Message:
Sent: 09-15-2016 08:20
From: Carolyn Greer
Subject: ITS Booth

Stay with me on this, okay! 

We have an outdoor multicultural festival every August in town and for the past ten years we have had a booth and all we do is make things out of newspaper, tape, and markers.  Parents love it because their kids take home a free souvenir from the festival.  

We make hats (some are folded pirate hats, some are free-style where you place a sheet of newspaper on the head, wrap tape around the circumference of the head and then roll and scrunch up the paper to make cute hats...I know, it sounds strange, but just try it one day!)  We make bows for the hair or wrist, or whatever, but our most popular items are the swords and daggers we make.  The kids go crazy for those.  We have markers out for them to decorate their paper creations if they want.  Most just run off with them to play!  We do state the rules that swords can only be used to hit trees, not humans, and if I see a child hitting another, I will go and nicely take them away.)  

Our local paper gives us old bundles of paper that they have yet to recycle and masking tape isn't that expensive.  

I can give you more details and try to find pictures for you if you'd like to learn more!

My best!

Carolyn

------------------------------
Carolyn Cork Greer
Owensboro KY

Original Message:
Sent: 09-14-2016 07:13
From: Kayla Wilson
Subject: ITS Booth

This is the second time my troope has been asked to set up a both for a community event.  We are very excited, but we are having a hard time coming up with ideas.  Last year we sold baked goods.  Does anyone have any other ideas for what a troupe could sell/do at a booth?  

Thank You! 

------------------------------
Kayla Wilson
Hillsboro OH
------------------------------

Original Message------

This is the second time my troope has been asked to set up a both for a community event.  We are very excited, but we are having a hard time coming up with ideas.  Last year we sold baked goods.  Does anyone have any other ideas for what a troupe could sell/do at a booth?  

Thank You! 

------------------------------
Kayla Wilson
Hillsboro OH
------------------------------

We sold instant makeovers a few years ago, transforming our guests into princesses and knights , and it was a great hit.

We looked through our storage unit and dragged out a stand-up prop of Cinderella's coach from a long-ago production and placed it right in the middle of our booth.  Next, we searched through our costume closet and found dresses, doublets, vests, pantaloons - in as wide a variety of sizes as possible - along with hats, jewelry, fancy shoes, boot "sleeves", etc.- all the embellishments we could find. We hung these on racks behind a makeshift curtain we had hung behind the coach. This part needs to be well-organized, and you'll need at least two people straightening and reorganizing at all times throughout the event.

Then our most energetic Thespians called out our "opening for a princess" in true Once Upon a Mattress style and, for $1, we would whisk our guest "backstage" - behind the coach - only to reappear moments later all decked out as a princess, knight, king, queen, etc.  (Note: we'd pick the outfit for them; they were never behind that back curtain, or we'd NEVER get them processed quickly - imagine all the choices!) THEN, we'd pose them in front of the coach, call out something along the lines of, "Hear ye! Hear ye! We have a new princess/king/duke...! The kingdom is saved!  HUZZAH!!!"  Mom or Dad would snap pictures on their phones amidst all the excitement, and then we'd quickly remove the costume pieces and send them on their way with their souvenir pictures already posted on Facebook and Snapchatted to all their friends.

Our initial thought was that we'd get all the little girls flocking to our booth, which we did, but we were surprised by the number of little boys we saw as well.  And, of course, there were plenty of teenaged girls who wanted to be a princess and more teen boys who dressed up than you'd think.  (I'm pretty sure there was quite a bit of good-natured daring going on...) We even decked out a few families!

Our kids had a BLAST doing this, and even some of my most reticent techs were fully into giving the announcements by the end of the weekend, and the crowds loved it.  They have begged me to do it again every year since.

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Jan Romans
Theatre Director
South Lyon High School
South Lyon MI

Original Message:
Sent: 09-14-2016 07:13
From: Kayla Wilson
Subject: ITS Booth

This is the second time my troope has been asked to set up a both for a community event.  We are very excited, but we are having a hard time coming up with ideas.  Last year we sold baked goods.  Does anyone have any other ideas for what a troupe could sell/do at a booth?  

Thank You! 

------------------------------
Kayla Wilson
Hillsboro OH
------------------------------

Hi,

For over forty years our department has been the "go to" face painting group in town. The Thespians do this at about 30 events per year, and use the opportunity to pass out our season brochures, fliers, and get some marketing and PR out to our community.

Although we only request donations, we usually bring in at least $300.00-$800.00 per event. This outreach counts as one Community Service credit (three required for induction).

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Krista Carson Elhai
Theatre Director
Claremont HS
An International Baccalaureate World School
Claremont CA

Original Message:
Sent: 09-14-2016 07:13
From: Kayla Wilson
Subject: ITS Booth

This is the second time my troope has been asked to set up a both for a community event.  We are very excited, but we are having a hard time coming up with ideas.  Last year we sold baked goods.  Does anyone have any other ideas for what a troupe could sell/do at a booth?  

Thank You! 

------------------------------
Kayla Wilson
Hillsboro OH
------------------------------

A puppet show? and/or a puppet making project center...buy fuzzy socks (two puppets) and felt for features and various size googly eyes, scraps of fabric, scissors and glue :) Charge a couple of dollars or take donations and make it a fundraiser!

I do sock puppets with my Tech Theatre class and the high school kids have a great time. Kids of all ages will too!

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Jeannie Brzovic
Lake Forest Park WA

Original Message:
Sent: 09-14-2016 07:13
From: Kayla Wilson
Subject: ITS Booth

This is the second time my troope has been asked to set up a both for a community event.  We are very excited, but we are having a hard time coming up with ideas.  Last year we sold baked goods.  Does anyone have any other ideas for what a troupe could sell/do at a booth?  

Thank You! 

------------------------------
Kayla Wilson
Hillsboro OH
------------------------------

Hello,

I haven't read trough the entire thread so this may have been mentioned.  What my students did last year was take the opportunity to show some leadership and take ownership.  They created a schedule of what was happening when and did a combination of performances, theatre games, and audience involved improv.  It was great because all I had to do was be present as the responsible adult.  They put a schedule on a dry erase board outside their booth and it was a huge success. 

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Sammie Real
Fayetteville, GA
srealiii@gmail.com

Original Message:
Sent: 09-17-2016 11:54
From: Jeannie Brzovic
Subject: ITS Booth

A puppet show? and/or a puppet making project center...buy fuzzy socks (two puppets) and felt for features and various size googly eyes, scraps of fabric, scissors and glue :) Charge a couple of dollars or take donations and make it a fundraiser!

I do sock puppets with my Tech Theatre class and the high school kids have a great time. Kids of all ages will too!

------------------------------
Jeannie Brzovic
Lake Forest Park WA

Original Message:
Sent: 09-14-2016 07:13
From: Kayla Wilson
Subject: ITS Booth

This is the second time my troope has been asked to set up a both for a community event.  We are very excited, but we are having a hard time coming up with ideas.  Last year we sold baked goods.  Does anyone have any other ideas for what a troupe could sell/do at a booth?  

Thank You! 

------------------------------
Kayla Wilson
Hillsboro OH
------------------------------