Students learn theatrical critcism through Cappies

Area high school actors will be getting a small taste of what professional stage actors both look forward to and dread — play reviews.

Students from area high schools are taking part in the Cappies, or Critics and Awards Program. The program allows high school theater and journalism students to be trained as critics, attend shows at other schools, write reviews and publish the reviews in local newspapers.

The Sedalia Democrat plans to run the reviews as they are received on the Swoop entertainment page.

The Cappies program was originated by William Strauss of The Capital Steps Group which is a Washington-based troupe of congressional staffers turned songwriters. The program, which was begun 11 years ago, has since spread to encompass a total of 17 cities throughout the United States and Canada.

According to Smith-Cotton High School Drama and Speech Teacher Nicholas Smith, the local group will be called  the Central Missouri Cappies.

“This is the first rural Cappies program,” Smith said.

Smith said the program is designed to increase public awareness of high school theater and theater artists, as well as getting students to be more involved in critical viewing and analysis of all theatrical programs.

Six to nine students from participating area high schools including Smith-Cotton High School, Sacred Heart, Lexington, Knob Noster and Clinton, were trained by Cappies personnel in a day-long session in September on how to write critiques and how to utilize the Cappie Web site.

“The students are extremely excited about the program,” Smith said. “One thing they were taught was to be realistic when writing reviews.”

After training, the student critics travel to other schools to view performances. The critics quickly meet during the show’s intermission to talk about their likes and dislikes and meet again at the conclusion of the play or musical.

The reviews are written from home.

The Cappies have a strict code of etiquette to follow at shows that includes not entering the theater until the lights dim, and not discussing the performance with the audience. The critics also do not participate in ovations or post-show activities.

Smith said the program is an excellent networking opportunity for the students and has been shown in other school to improve the overall performance of the students participating in the plays and musicals.

At the end of the year, the student critics will vote for awards that will be presented at the formal Cappies Gala.

More than 20 awards will be given for performance, technical and writing categories. The critics’ awards are selected by a panel of adults and are based on writing and publication success.

Smith said the ultimate goal for the Central Missouri Cappies is to be able to distribute scholarship funds to the students who show outstanding performance through the program.