Thespian Troupe 8855

One weekend. A room full of zealous young actors sharing their interests. Some may be preparing to turn it into their future career, others simply there for the experience. All of them have discovered a passion for the arts. 

The Arkansas Thespians State Festival is a competition held in February for student actors from around the state to compete in various competitions relating to theater. Thespian Troupe 8855, the school’s official troupe, was established last year by theater director Jeremy Clay.

“I have wanted to do Thespians for a while, but struggled to find time with my production schedule,” Clay said. “With the career houses and Buzz Time, I saw a window opening for working on thespian solos, duets and group events during the school day.”

Multiple competitions are offered, varying from duet acting to theater marketing.

“You can do single or solo, duet or group, musicals, scenes, a monologue or you can act,” senior Stanley Robinson said. “Mr. [Jeremy] Clay and another student, Annslee Clay, are directing a group musical, and I have been chosen to direct a group scene.”

Robinson is directing a scene from last year’s fall play, “The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Nighttime.”

 “Our scene is purely acting while Annslee’s is acting, singing and dancing,” Robinson said. “Currently, we are only rehearsing during Buzz Time, but festival isn’t until February, so we’ve got plenty of time to prepare, especially since the scenes are only five minutes.”

Clay selected Annslee and Robinson as directors due to the leadership that both have exhibited throughout their theater experience. 

“Both understand the ins and outs of production work,” Clay said. “Annslee performed in her first full show when she was 6 [years old] and has a resume comparable to any Broadway-bound teen. Stanley’s work on ‘The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Nighttime’ last year made him the perfect candidate to renew it for festival.”

Robinson has never had an official position of leadership related to theater but has practiced this skill through participating in previous shows. 

“Just being one of the more experienced students in a show has helped,” Robinson said. “Last year, as a junior, I led a lot of the underclassmen during our musical ‘Crazy For You’ in acting exercises before the show or just giving them little tips. I’ve definitely tried to be a leader throughout my time here.”

With multiple responsibilities on his chest as a director, discovering the line between acting as a friend or an authoritative figure has been difficult for Robinson, especially with all of the actors being his peers. 

“When you’re being a friend, you focus on being supportive, but when it comes to being a leader, you also have to be a lot more critical, and you need to tell them what they need to improve on.”

Robinson has participated in theater for four years and has been heavily impacted by performing in this art. 

“I like the idea of being someone I’m not and just putting myself in the mindset of someone with different morals or different emotions and the way that they can control them,” Robinson said. “I’ve found that sometimes theater can change my view on parts of life. It’s just about getting to be that person and see life through their shoes.”