International Thespian Society: What ITS All About!

The Emery/Weiner School is home to a wide variety of students who are passionate about theatre.  Together, they express this love in a club called the International Thespian Society (ITS). At Emery, the ITS Troupe stands to educate, spread awareness, create opportunities, and boast community both within Emery’s campus and in the Houston community. 

One of the club’s 20 devoted members, junior Jeremy Weinstein-Sears, has been participating in theatre productions since his sixth-grade year at Emery, and a member of ITS since the spring of his eighth-grade year. 

As the current secretary on the board of the club, Weinstein-Sears’ role is to assist in, “note-taking, checking calendar dates, helping plan the revues, checking in with the committee chairs on their projects, and presenting Artist of the Week and other theatre announcements during Ma’amad!” Artist of the Week is a new addition to the weekly Friday Ma’amads, invented by this year’s ITS board. Weinstein-Sears, one of the members that helped the idea come to life, explains “The goal of Artist of the Week was, like the other weekly awards, to shout out not just theatre kids, but also visual, instrumental, and technical artists!” He continues, “We noticed that athletes were recognized all the time for their amazing accomplishments, so we felt that artists who all contribute to the school should be recognized as well!” 

One of ITS’ finest contributions as a club is its seasonal revues, in which the troupe produces a series of performances under a common theme. But more than this, the club utilizes this time as an opportunity to help fundraise for organizations in need. Before and after the show begins, they speak about the importance of this cause, and at the end kindly ask for donations. Weinstein-Sears mentions, “We usually donate to theatre-related organizations, like Young Audiences of Houston or Broadway Cares, but we’ve also donated money to organizations helping people after a crisis or disasters…last year we donated all the money to aid families who lost loved ones at Astroworld.” 

On April 16, the ITS Troupe performed in their final revue of the year. With the theme “Deja Re-Vu(e),” they performed songs, scenes, and monologues from past Emery productions, making for a nostalgic and enjoyable night of theatre. At the end of the night, they raised a total of $359 for their chosen organization, Global Fund for Women, a non-profit organization that funds international women’s rights activities. 

ITS is an incredible opportunity for theatre-loving students to be able to express themselves at Emery, and beyond. Filled with an amazing board, and talented troupe, the club has accomplished a lot and is on track to do even more next year!

2022-2023 ITS Troupe:

Marissa Bishop, Natalie Burdine, Evelyn Burt, Ethan Canfield, Charlotte Goldstein, Lilly Harrison, Maya Malev, Lauren Miller, Cortney Murray, Maggie Novak, Claire Parry, Bella Phelps, Jack Paransky, Sage Rosenfeld, Gabby Samuels, Meier Turboff, Caden Warren, Grey Warren, Ellen Weinstein, Jeremy Weinstein-Sears