On December 6th, 2012, myself and staff reporters Olivia Coleman, Ellie Oliver, and Tori Ganahl made our way to downtown Denver with about 45 other Monarch thespians. We were on a quest to absorb as much theatre-related shenanigans as possible at the 2013 Colorado Thespian Conference. The conference is a three day event held at the Denver Convention center. It is a weekend for all the thespian troupes in Colorado to come together and revel in their passion for theater.

At the conference, thespians can compete in several categories with the hope of going through to the national thespian conference in the summer. It is an opportunity to experience a professional audition, and perform in a high-pressure situation. Any one individual can compete in two events in the following categories: musical theatre (duet or solo), acting, film, group scene, or tech. Although no one from troupe 5989 (that’s Monarch’s assigned troupe number) qualified for nationals, the Monarch thespians had a wonderful experience at the conference.

Thespians had a chance to take numerous theatre-related workshops, go to a crazy dance, watch showcase performances from the top competitors at the conference, and watch both a play and a musical performed by some of the best actors and actresses in high school theatre. Check out some of the highlights in the 2013 Thespian Conference photo gallery.