Every year, talented students across the state are chosen to perform as well as work behind the scenes in the All State production at the Illinois Theatre Festival. This year, senior Josh Kline was one of six lighting crew members for the All State production of The Grapes of Wrath and theatre teacher Teslen Sadowski worked on the props crew.

“Before we went downstate, I designed part of the set as well as built it. When we actually went downstate, I was in charge of half a mile of cable for intelligent lighting and I oversaw the taking down, inventory, and storage of that cable,” Kline said. “It was a very interesting opportunity to be able to work outside of school and in a different theatre. It was a unique experience to work on a college campus.

Sadowski was also busy working back stage.

“My job was to make sure all the props were there, and I put them in order with the help of a student team,” she said.

The All State production required time before the actual festival for those part of the team.

“Starting in April until January, we worked on the show. We took four weekends to build the set, look for props, find costumes, etc. and then we moved the set to ISU. Beginning January 2, we were at ISU until theatrefest,” Sadowski said.

The opportunity to see peers’ work hit close to home for senior Mustafa Anwar.

“[My favorite part was] the night we arrived at ISU, [Kline] took me and a few other seniors back stage to meet the cast and crew. We were able to see the show before it was even performed,” he said.

Meanwhile, back at school, Green Room prepared to attend the festival. After a busy first semester, the thespians were able to start second semester off with some new ideas for the theatre company.  The week school resumed, following a couple of cold days, Green Room Theatre Company joined Central’s Encore! to travel to Illinois State University. On January 9-11, theatre fanatics from both North and Central, as well as other Illinois state high schools, enjoyed a weekend of celebrations, shows, workshops, and bonding.

“There’s a whole bunch of workshops offered from makeup to acting, lighting to tech,” Sadowski said. “There were also different ceremonies to welcome the kids, and the closing ceremony featured Second City. Improv Mafia and the Q Brothers also attended.”

Besides these opportunities, there are also plenty of chances to see other high schools and students perform.

“Our students were able to see up to three shows,” Sadowski said. “Other high schools perform, and then there’s the All State show. It’s a great experience for them.”

Prior to actually attending the festival, students prepared for weeks.

“First, we had to attend a couple of meetings to understand the rules, expectations, prices, etc. We then had to tell our teachers and get the work that we would be missing prior to our departure. Also, we could look up what types of workshops and shows were offered,” said senior Gena Fricke.

Overall, the festival was a success and students were able to relax while learning things that could be implemented into the program.

“If there’s one thing I learned from theatrefest, it was the ‘explore the extraordinary.’ Ironically enough, that was the theme for the festival this year, and the way I interpreted it was that we have the choice to do many things in life; those that we love and those we don’t love but need. And sometimes, we don’t get the chance to do either so we have to cherish every second we have and make every moment extraordinary,” Anwar said.