Check out website for the most up to date information and follow us on our socials! Schedule a meeting with Addie and take our 2023-24 survey (similar to last year's if you completed it with updates for this year). Thank you to all who joined us for #vtff2024. Join us Jan 9-11th for #vtf2025! Complete our VTF 2024 Survey for a potential prize! LAST CALL!

We would also love to share out about your programs on our social media pages. Follow us on Facebook and Instagram at @vathespians so we can follow you back/keep track of your happenings. You may see your school or show featured soon. Use #vathespians for us to easily find your post!

Teacher tool of the month: Consider the BACKstage Exam

"The BACKstage technical theatre exam sets your students up for success in college or career, and helps you secure resources and recognition for your program." USITT Exam- https://www.usitt.org/education-training/backstage-exam

REMINDER: I hope this email finds you well and that you are ready for the holiday season and festivities! FCPS is partnering with International Schools Theatre Association (ISTA) to offer an IB Theatre (Cat 1 & Cat 2) Training in March. We are opening this opportunity up to all theatre teachers/ teaching artists on the east coast. If there is an opportunity for you to share with theatre teachers in your network- please feel free to tweak or revise the blurb below. Teachers are able to access this training through ISTA but this is a discounted rate and local (usually our teachers have to travel to NYC, FL, or LA to take in person offering).

Fairfax County Public Schools in collaboration with The International Schools Theatre Association (ISTA) will be offering a DP Theatre workshop (Cat 1 and 2 combined) from March 13-15 at Marshall High School located in Fairfax, VA (7731 Leesburg Pike Falls Church, VA 22043). The cost will be $350 per participant; meals will not be provided but participants will have an hour for lunch. Teachers would only be able to qualify in Cat 1 or Cat 2- not both. Only teachers who have attended a Cat 1 training and have been teaching IB Theatre for more than 1 year may register for the Cat 2 offering.

IB/DP Theatre Arts Training- Cat 1 & Cat 2

Location: March 13-15 at Marshall High School (7731 Leesburg Pike Falls Church, VA 22043)

Time: March 13- 14, 7:45AM - 4PM. March 15, 7:45AM – 1PM.

Teacher: International Schools Theatre Association (ISTA) & Certified IB Theatre Trainer

Registration Link:

https://ista.co.uk/event/fairfax-county-ib-training-dp-theatre-category-1-2-combined/

Please consider this offering and feel free to share with theatre artists and teachers you know who may be interested. This is a great opportunity for any theatre teacher who is looking to build curriculum and instructional strategies, particularly when incorporating global modalities and non-western perspectives into theatre practices and content.

Tara Taylor,PhD.(she/her/hers)

FCPS Theatre Arts & Dance Educational Specialist

Also, don't forget about our summer teacher training, Thespian Educator Intensive (TEI) in August (read more below) & tag us in your posts on social media so we can re-share @vathespians

Join us next summer for the most amazing shared teacher experience! Forget traditional PDs, this is a lesson sharathon, teachers sharing best strategies with teachers, bonding, lesson planning, and more! Add more to your teacher toolbox and join us in August! We are looking for presenters. Here is a sample of our model lesson plan. Email Addie or colleges@vathespian.org with your interest in teaching a session or two! More information coming soon!

Interested in updating/revising the VHSL scoring process? If you would like to see this happen please fill out this form (less than five min) and PLEASE send it out to everyone in your district and get them to fill it out. VHSL is looking to get feedback, clarify the rubric/scoring, and more. Help us spread the word and be a part of the change!

Sofie Fifield is an alumni from Oakton High School in Fairfax County who is a VA Thespian alumni member, now goes to NoVA Community College, and recently just wrote an original musical inspired by the Twilight series called "Daylight the Musical". Sofie is hoping to continue the project this summer in NoVA. Scan & complete the QR code form with any interest. Congrats Sofie! We are excited to see your journey with this show, the performing arts, etc. Consider checking out the musical in the Youtube sneak peak below and find out more information on Instagram at @daylight_the_musical!

Know an alumni doing incredible things? Email executivedirector@vathespian.org so we can brag about them and their accomplishments!

SPRING & SUMMER THESPIAN EVENTS:

-TIOS Month: March (3/4-3/5 VTO interviews)

-May VTO Social TBD

-June: Board Retreat, location TBD, June 14-16th, 2024

-July: EdTA Events

-Aug: 4-6th Teacher Educator Intensive & Sat. 10th VTO Training, location TBD

Sept: Registration opens, TBD

HAPPY SPRING SHOW SEASON!

Teachers:

-TEI: Thespian Educator Intensive (Richmond, VA)

- EdTA Advocacy Day/ Leadership Summit July (Tysons, VA/DC)

-Broadway Teachers Workshop Multiple Sessions July (NYC)

-Last Frontier Theatre Conference June 8th week (AK)

Students:

-Creative Stages (College Prep & Teen Show/Intensive) (Loudoun, VA) July 15th-18th or July 20th-27th

-MSA Intensive (Alexandria, VA)

-Westfield Summer Stages (Fairfax, VA) May auditions, June-July rehearsal/ performances

-IAMT Intensive (2-4 weeks, NYC) July 1st- 26th

-Open Jar Institute Intensive (1 week, NYC, includes everything) June, July, or August options (including one for tech theatre as well as college students too)

-Governor's School (by audition only) (Radford, VA)

-Thespian All-state show A Chorus Line rehearsals: weekend of May 10, June 17-19, July-Nov pick up, Dec 13-15 tech/preview shows, Jan pick up rehearsals

Check our social media accounts for EdTA, our parent organization or for VA Thespians for recent reminders and updates. Get more resources, learn more about International Thespian Society, and more! The remaining information below is a friendly reminder from previous newsletters. Follow us on Instagram: @vathespians

Email: executivedirector@vathespian.org
Website: https://www.vathespian.org/mission.html
Location: Winchester, VA, USA
Phone: 703-554-3416
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/VirginiaThespians
Twitter: @thespians1

Upcoming EdTA Events: $100 off if you register for TEC & ITF together!

June- ITF, June 23-28, 2024, Indiana University

July- Summit, July 18-20th, 2024 Tysons Corner, VA (Hilton hotel same as our festival venue)

September- TEC, September 26-29, 2024, The Depot l Minneapolis, MN

*Email/ director checklist coming out soon for those who have qualifying students with Thespys, etc. fofr ITF, register for Thespys by May to take full advantage. Registration opens today!

Use the most up-to-date logos , colors, fonts, etc. for a refresh and to get your branding up to speed with our new logos. Break a leg on fall auditions, productions, one act competitions, ITS inductions, first quarters, and more. Let us know how we can help support you this year!

Did you hear we have a Virginia Thespians Alumni Facebook group? Consider passing this along to your graduating seniors. So far, it is an inspiring network of over 300 professionals, who can be valuable resources for your students beyond high school. These are previous Thespians who remember what it is like to be in their shoes and many of which are happy to serve as mentors. We are creating an alumni board to also fundraise resources for students going to festival, bring in more alumni guest artists, and more! If you are an alumni, consider joining it yourself! We have many more plans in store for the alumni to partner with us to support the current as well as future generations of Virginia Thespians! Join us today!

Here is an easy step-by-step checklist for spring inductions. Use these materials as you see fit!

1. Hold an interest meeting. Ask- Who is interested in becoming inducted into ITS?

2. Share out the point application (your own copy) for students to complete with their past and current theatrical experiences for certain point values.

3. Have students fill out the Member Google form, (your own copy) for the exact information you need to collect to put them into the official ITS/ EdTA system, and pay $35 for the one-time membership fee, which lasts them a lifetime. (More materials at the bottom of the newsletter to promote and explain ITS.)

4. Hold inductions. Here is a sample outline to use. You can create your own rituals, traditions, or if you are in a pinch, it can be less than 30 minutes before school starts or before a rehearsal for example.

5. Log into your myedta account to input all of your new inductees.

6. Pay the lump sum as the director, if your students didn't pay EdTA directly. Our suggestion is to collect the money as you typically do for school events, work with your bookkeeper or boosters to cut one check to EdTA to keep it simple.

7. Hold an end of year or semester celebration to hand out the new goodies when they are delivered to the school! Here is the Thespian store for graduation regalia. If you are trying to save money, cords can be found on Amazon too.

Don't have a troupe yet? Read more about the benefits and process here! You do not need a minimum number of students now to activate/ reactivate your troupe. Get started today! Other resources on inductions from EdTA.

*Hold fall inductions so your students get inducted so they get the discounts for all events and so they can qualify to move onto nationals with their Thespys.

Here is a Google Slides PPT about Thespians to encourage students to join.

Here is a Festival Guide for students or new troupe directors.