SUBJECT: Theatre Guild eNews - February 10, 2025 Guild Newsletter
February 10, 2025
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Newsletter in Brief: Top 5 This Week
Join us for our Guild Meeting this Tuesday evening AFTER the PTSA Meeting, February 11.
Congratulations to the entire cast and crew of The Standard of the Manfor an outstanding production!
Please note Tuesday's PTSA meeting will include a school safety presentation from Mr. Williams and district representatives.
Special thanks to all who attended The African Company Presents Richard III. See below for all the details.
Looking to donate to Feed the Kids or Concessions? Information below. Your generous in-kind donations help keep guild costs down. Thank you!
Next Guild Meeting is Tuesday February 11th at 7pm (after the PTSA meeting)
Concessions Donations
You are invited to shop on Amazon using the Theatre Guild's Wish List. Amazon will ship donations directly to Concessions Chair Alicia Rico. Just in time for Valentine's day, the Guild Concessions needs CANDY donations! Sour + gummy candies are the most popular. (Which is why we are out of sour and gummy candy!) Chocolates are great too!
Want to celebrate a hardworking member of the cast or crew? It's easy. The Playbill Design Team volunteers can turn your photo and words into a full color ad. Playbill ads start at $25 for a quarter page. And playbill ads are a Theatre Guild Member benefit starting at the Copper Membership Level.
The deadline for placing an ad in the playbill for Paul Baker New Works Festival is February 25th.
The deadline for the Senior Directing One Act Play Festival is now Friday March 7th. THIS IS THE LAST DAY OF CLASSES BEFORE SPRING BREAK!!!
Coming Soon! Sign ups to Volunteer to Feed the Kids in the Senior Balcony of the Commons before tech rehearsals and shows OR in the lobby on performance nights selling Concessions and/or Merchandise for our spring shows.
This spring, Feed the Kids will be providing meals to support Paul Baker New Works Festival, Senior Directing One Act Play Festival and 9 to 5. The Theatre Guild does not charge the cast or crew any fees for the meals provided by Feed the Kids. If you would like to make a monetary donation to help cover the cost of meals, please use this link to donate.
We have had many generous families donate additional money and meals during the 2024-25 season. If you would like to donate a meal for the entire cast & crew for one of our upcoming productions, you can make arrangements with Feed the Kids Co-Chairs Ashley Gregory and Stephanie Ruibal at feedthekids@btwtheatreguild.com
Questions about Feed the Kids Donations or FTK Volunteer shifts should be directed to Co-Chairs Ashley Gregory and Stephanie Ruibal at feedthekids@btwtheatreguild.com
Photos by Jackie Cooper. These are made available for personal use by students using the link provided to the students.
We don't want to miss an appearance or accomplishment! We rely on our guild members to let us know where to spot a Pegasus in the wild. If your Pegasus is in a non-Booker T production, please let us know. Our talented kids are so busy we need your eyes and ears to make sure we get the word out. Please include viewing dates, ticket links and any other details that will help us spot a Pegasus in the Wild. Alumni are Pegasi as well so keep those tips coming in too!!!
On February 5th, the Theatre Guild partnered with Soul Rep Theatre Company to host a group of Booker T. students and parents for a performance of The African Company Presents Richard III. Regardless of grade level, the Booker T students each entered Bryant Hall with their own connection to the work. Most of the students studied Carlyle Brown's play at school and brought that context with them. Seniors from Lisa Cotie's Directing Seminar are currently in early morning rehearsals for the upcoming One Act Play Festival (March 19-21 & 26-28). These young directors were able to see Ms Cotie (Assistant Chair of the BTW Theatre Conservatory) implement the very ideas that she has worked hard to impart upon them. After the performance, actors spoke how text work & dialect study were used to create the characters on stage. Emir Price (BTW 2018) acknowledged how his participation in the mime troupe played an important role in character development and grounding. Not only was Zariyah Perry (BTW 2023) also a member of the mime troupe, she and Emir were both named Presidential Scholars in the Arts as high school seniors. The BTW connections to this production extend beyond the director and actors to 2024 Theatre Conservatory graduates Zenora Collier (Wardrobe/Stage Hand) and Hayden Elliot (Sound Designer). Assistant Chair of the BTW Theatre Conservatory and director of the Mime Troupe Charlton Gavitt (BTW 1989) also served as the Lighting Designer.
It is notable that Soul Rep Theatre Company was founded in 1995 by Dallas/Fort Worth natives Guinea Bennett-Price, Anyika McMillan-Herod, and Tonya Holloway. Guinea and Anyika are both Booker T. graduates from the Class of 1989. Tonya Holloway is currently teaching Film classes at Booker T. and Guinea Bennett-Price is the director of the Theatre Conservatory.
Soul Rep Theatre Company continues to produce important works with deep connections to Booker T. The African Company Presents Richard III closed over the weekend but there is much more to come from Soul Rep. Click this link to see what's coming up in 2025.
Images from February 5th Talk Back that Soul Rep Theatre Company provided for BTW students & parents in conjunction with the Theatre Guild.
Poetry Out Loud
Maxine Louthan (BTW 2025) has advanced in the TEA's Poetry Out Loud Competition. She will be competing in the finals in Austin later this month. The statewide winner receives $200, while his or her school library garners $500. The state’s second place winner receives $100, and his or her school library, $250. The statewide winner will represent Texas at the national competition in Washington, DC in late April.
Lady Sings the Blues
You can spot Theatre alum Nikka Morton (BTW 1995) starring in Lyric Stage production of Lady Day at Emerson’s Bar and Grill through February 23. Check out the Dallas Voice review to read more about Morton's portrayal of Billie Holiday. Tickets can be purchased using this link. (Note Lyric Stage's suggested audience age based on the content)
African-American Read-In
Esau Price (2025) and Cadence Diggs (2027) performed at the Delta Sigma Theta Sorority Incorporated Fort Worth Alumnae Chapter's African-American Read-In held at the Modern Art Museum of Fort Worth on February 9. Esau performed an excerpt from his original play "Skera" and Cadence performed her original poem "Book Ban." Also pictured is BTW Film Instructor Tonya Holloway.
If you are the parent or guardian of a Theatre Conservatory student you are invited to join the individual class Facebook group for additional information & updates about everything that is going on at Booker T.
All Facebook groups are private and you will need to provide your BTW student's name and answer the questions in order for your request to join to be approved.
