Thespian Troupe 8635 has participated in the state festival for the last four years, earning honors on a regular basis

Ridgefield High School’s Thespian Troupe 8635 earned Gold Honor Troupe status at the State Thespian Festival held at Western Washington University in Bellingham last week. 

The troupe performed in front of nearly 1,300 of their peers from across the state and were taught by teaching artists representing the Educational Theatre Association, the parent organization of the International Thespian Society. Thespian Troupe 8635 has participated in the state festival for the last four years, earning honors on a regular basis.

This year, Ridgefield High School received the following honors at the Washington State Thespian Festival:

• 17 students were honored for their state qualifying Thespy performances and presentations, and six students were honored for their national qualifying Thespy performances
• BriAnna Robbins was awarded the Petra Karr Scholarship for Student Leadership
• 14 students performed a work-in-progress scene from RHS’ upcoming production of The Addams Family
• Students prepared and performed a lip sync performance of “Revolting Children”
• The team of Ella Ross and Caige Sothern prepared and presented for the Gold Level Honor Troupe for continued high standards of excellence in production, participation, community service, and outreach

“Our students put a lot of effort into preparing for this experience, and they get a lot out of it,” said Kaitlyn Etter, Troupe Director. “Not only do they deserve the recognition, but also in terms of expanded horizons and experience in collaborating and communicating that will serve them well whatever they choose to do after high school.”

The members of Troupe 8635 are: Seniors Ella Ross, Caige Sothern, BriAnna Robbins, Summer Sedgley, Victoria Bosch, Caleb Ceravolo, Emily Trost, Kaya Felton, Sunny Bowerman, Andrew Wilken, Madelyn Winter, and Alissa Avery; Juniors Payton Grimm, Elle Lutz, Gabrielle Hemmelman, Megan Hopper, Emily Bloom, Kennadi Jones, Quinn Hemrich, Illy Ikonomou, Jacob Vande Krol, and Raven Meade; Sophomores Robin Turner, Conner Rippee, Nicole Durham, Elliana Lewis, Analeigh Duplessie, Jakie Bernard, and Keiyanai Maldonado Albino. The troupe was chartered in 2018. The 2022-2023 officers are Ella Ross, Caige Sothern, BriAnna Robbins, Elle Lutz, Summer Sedgley, and Payton Grimm.

About Ridgefield High School Thespian Troupe 8635 and the International Thespian Society

The International Thespian Society (ITS) is an honorary organization for high school and middle school theatre students located at more than 4,700 affiliated secondary schools across America, Canada, and abroad. The mission of ITS is to honor student achievement in the theatre arts. High school inductees are known as “Thespians”. ITS is a division of the Educational Theatre Association (EdTA).

Information provided by Ridgefield School District.