inducted.

Tuesday night I got all dressed up with my mom and two sisters and we all went to my induction ceremony for the International Thespian Society. If you don’t know what that is, it is basically a worldwide society that honors students who put in a certain amount of work for anything theater related, be it acting, doing lights and sound, hair and makeup, or shifting crew, all of the hours you put in add up and once you get 100 and work on two full length shows, you can be inducted and build up more hours and higher rankings from there. This year I worked on Anne Frank and Me and Fiddler on the Roof, giving me my hours and points. I was even honored with an “Unsung Hero” award for the crazy things I’ve gotten myself involved in with these people, and trust me when I’ve seen a little bit of everything at this point.

Both of those shows were awesome experiences, and I will never forget them. My role in theater has never really been on stage, though I’ve landed in the spotlight a few times, but behind the curtain. In the first show I mentioned I earned the title “Costume Mistress” and was in charge of making sure every one was dressed, made up, and ready to go when their scene came. It was one of the most stressful, wonderful, and hilarious time periods of my life, and those long rehearsals are some of the highlights of my high school career. My OCD was finally put to use in the hectic and mad world that is a quick change room, and I will always cherish the sides of people that come to the surface when they’re under the intense pressure of time and an awaiting audience.

The nicest kids would come flying through that door, shedding ties and shoes and dresses, snatching things from hangers and running for help with zippers, all the while whisper-screaming obscenities of all different colors as they are handed hair pins and earrings on the way back through the door, pulling it together in those last fleeting milliseconds before they appear on the carefully constructed set that skillfully disguised the costumes pieces that I would have to hunt down at the end of every performance because the changes were just too quick for the actors to get back to my room in time. Some of my favorite moments were when the sweetest, most conservative kids would trip and dash to cover their mouth as they let a string of words loose, or the way I would have to fight girls from the crew out of the room when the male lead was changing. On the days I could convince Meghan to help me I could see her from the corner of my eye doing a last minute check on everyone’s details as they left, yanking skirts down or curls into place.

It’s a wild and insane ride behind those thick curtains, and it’s awesome. I cannot even express how hard it was to watch all of the seniors who are just days from graduating giving their farewell speeches last night, tears were filling my eyes because all of those odd and twisted people who are strange enough to register for theater classes are my family in a way. I’ve witnessed the good and the bad with all of them, and I adore every minute of it.

Next season’s shows are going to be fantastic, and I look forward to reminding each and every one of them at next year’s ceremony that I’ve seen them all in a naked panic, and I still love them dearly.

PS- There are certainly a number of people I can name, Meghan, that would be more than willing to kiss you. Just sayin’.