During the annual Texas Thespian Festival her sophomore year, Emily Keating watched as a group of State Thespian Officers (STOs) walked by in their khaki pants, collared shirts and colored sashes hoping one day she would join them to represent Texas theatre. A year later, she received an email in class reading, “Congrats, you have been selected as a state thespian officer,” and jumped up and down with her friends.
“As an STO, you have to appear in a specific way, present yourself in a professional manner and behave in a respective demeanor. STOs are like mini celebrities at Thespian Festival each year,” Keating said. “It’s so awesome to think about because I remember a year ago looking at the group of kids and wanting to be them, and now that’s actually me, I get to be one of them.”
In her position, Keating will help organize, plan and speak at the annual Texas Thespian Festival at the Gaylord Texan where over 11,000 students gather for workshops, competitions and performances.
“It can be a little terrifying because of how many people I will have to speak in front of, but it’s also really exciting,” Keating said. “I feel so proud that I get to represent not only my school, but my district, my community and my friends, so many people at a state level.”
The STO application consisted of four eliminations with different tasks and activities for each round. Round one included a submission link with basic information about the applicant, director and principal’s information, two short essay responses, personal presentation and a video response. Round two consisted of a group project with other applicants to present a project on theatre advocacy and a Google Meet interview. Round three, Keating presented herself among judges and other applicants at Texas Thespian Festival in one minute for a final interview. After a month of waiting, Keating found out, out of over 100 applicants, she became one of the 24 chosen.
“When I found out I made it past round one, I was just beaming with joy,” Keating said. “I knew it was a state officer position, but still couldn’t wrap my head around how big of a deal this really was. To think that I was one of the few chosen, just blows my mind. I remember the last round of interviewing was the most terrifying for sure because they called my name as the first to go, and I remember my heart dropping. ”
Keating shows gratitude for Head Theatre Director Jeremy Ferman and Assistant Theatre Director Sara Corley supporting her both on paper and emotionally.
“It’s crazy how much both of them insanely support me and help each other out to make our theatre program so strong,” Keating said. “I remember as soon as I read the email that I got accepted, I ran down to Mr. Ferman’s room and celebrated with him and other officers. I’m so thankful for his and all of my friend’s support throughout this whole process.”
Mr. Ferman believes that Keating came into Legacy’s theatre program ready to lead and she continued to prove that throughout the STO application process.
“I know she held leadership at Jobe and was a member of StuCo here at Legacy, so that really prepared her for becoming an STO,” Mr. Ferman said. “The great thing about Emily is that she is a good listener and can take the wants and needs of the Drama Club and Thespian Troupe to the Leadership Council and get things done.”
Mr. Ferman hopes that the state thespian officers will push Keating to continue growing her leadership skills, which she can bring back to Legacy.
“I also hope that she will help show other theatre troupes and schools that Legacy Theatre is strong and does really good work. I think that is important as we advocate for ourselves in the community,” Mr. Ferman said. “I was really proud of the work Emily had done to become a state theatre officer. It is the first time in 20 years I have had a student who was even interested, and she got it on the very first try.”
As the first MISD student to become a state thespian officer, Keating feels proud to advocate for funding and support for theatre programs across the state.
“As a tech kid in theatre, sometimes it’s easy to feel underrepresented, especially in the real world because you see all these actors and actresses in the movies getting all the awards, but you never recognize the technicians or the people behind the scenes,” Keating said. “On top of representing all the technicians in theatre, I want to advocate for theatre as a whole because a lot of the times it’s underfunded or not appreciated. I don’t want to just sit back and watch, but I want to represent and advocate for all the people that I love.”
