Annually, Thespian Troupes from across Kansas gather in a festival to both improve skills and appreciate others. This year, Topeka High’s Thespian Troupe 210 sent 19 thespians to Wichita to join in the theatrical celebration known as Conference.

“Conference is like a huge convention for theatre nerds. Not only do you get to meet other people who enjoy the same thing that you do from other schools, they also have workshops that show you how to get better not only just acting but also improv and they have stage working like tech and sound,” Aja Gamble, junior thespian, said.

A large part of Conference is the workshops provided, in which young thespians can learn a variety of dramatic skills ranging from dancing to improvisation to theatre fundamentals.

“I went to some improv. It was mostly the fundamentals and basics of how you do it so whenever you do get the chance to do improv you don’t look stupid and you know what you’re doing,” Gamble said. “There was another workshop where it was a way to connect with the person you’re in a scene with, because if you’re acting and you’re not really listening to the other person, the scene is going to be dull, but if you two really connect then there is going to be so much more to it.”

Peter Sandquist, a junior and first-year thespian, had a good experience with his first Conference, attending several workshops as well as shows.

“Well becoming an actor is a hard process and going to Conference made me feel closer to what I wanted to become.”

Attending Conference is a trend that is fairly new to Troupe 210, but numbers of attendees have grown in recent years and members are hopeful that the trend will continue upward for the years.

“I remember freshman year we had like three people go, and from then it’s just been growing because last year we had 11. This year I think we had 19 so I hope it just continues to grow. I want us to take a huge pack of Troupe 210,” Gamble said.