Two Fort High students and their teacher recently returned from the annual Summer Conference at the Guthrie Theatre in Minneapolis, Mn., where they were the first Canadians ever to participate.
The conference is designed to expose high school students and teachers to various aspects of live theatre.
This year, Willa Kunkel, a drama teacher at Fort Frances High School, took Angela Huntley and Doug Judson to the four-day event.
“This was the first time they were allowed to expand out of state,” Kunkel said, explaining why Fort Frances students had never participated before.
“We were the only Canadians who have ever gone. Everyone was very excited to meet us,” said Huntley, adding there were about 150 students there, mostly from Minnesota.
The theme of this year’s conference was “The Art of Adaptation.”
“Adaptation is when they turn a movie into a book, or vice versa, or when they turn a play into a musical, or vice versa. That sort of thing,” Judson explained.
The conference involved a series of workshops and guest speakers who talked about different aspects of theatre. “They were all very well done,” Huntley said.
Both students enjoyed the workshop on creative movement. “They showed us how to develop a character through movement and speech,” Huntley noted.
“You become more aware of what your body is capable of to present a different personality,” Judson added.
Each participant in the conference received a ticket to see the Guthrie’s production of “Pride and Prejudice,” a play adapted from the novel by Jane Austen.
The two Fort High students also saw William Shakespeare’s “A Midsummer Night’s Dream” and a show at the Fringe Festival.
The cost of the event was $150 (U.S.), which included the conference speakers and workshops, some meals, and three nights at “a very nice hotel.”
“It was a really good deal,” said Huntley.
Kunkel said the theatre also gave her 50 tickets to a production of “Romeo and Juliet.”
“We just need funding for a bus,” she remarked.
Huntley, 16, is going into Grade 11 at Fort High in September and said she is interested in pursuing a career in theatre.
“I would like to. It’s a lot of fun,” she noted. “I could start out with one thing, and if that doesn’t work out, move on to something else.”
Judson, 17, is entering his final year at Fort High as president of the student executive council (SEC).
He’s not sure if theatre is in his plans for the future. “It’s hard to say. Some of it I’d really like to do and other things not so much,” he admitted.
Each school was allowed to bring up to six participants, but only Huntley and Judson met the application deadline.
“I would encourage everyone who didn’t get a chance to go to go next year—even if you’re not interested in acting,” Huntley stressed.
“Hopefully, we’ll get to go again next year,” she added.
“It was just great. I would go again,” Judson said.
(Fort Frances Times)
Fort Frances Times
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