Frequently Asked Questions

Please reach us at gchdrama@gmail.com if you cannot find an answer to your question.

How do you get into states?

To participate in the States festival, you must either have participated at the district competition in December, or have been a part of a MainStage that was admitted to the festival.

When and where will states take place?

States will occur March 13-16 at the Tampa Convention Center and Straz Center of Performing Arts in Tampa, FL. The students will disembark around lunchtime on March 13th and will return March 16th around 11pm. Students will be staying at the Marriott Waterstreet in Tampa, a 2-minute walk from the main convention center.

How is my child going to be taken care of?

The student will be assigned to a specific chaperone that will be in contact and in charge of your child. Your child is also not permitted to leave at any time without the presence of 2 other troupe members or a chaperone. Students will be checked on periodically, and will have required attendance to all events throughout the day.

What is included in the payment?

Transportation, Hotel Room, Festival Admittance Fee, Badge + T-Shirt, Workshops with Broadway Professionals, 2 MainStage Performance Tickets.

All food must be bought personally and is NOT included in the fee. Everything is within walking distance once in Tampa, and only if needed the Thespian Trolleys are free to use to transport students to the Straz Center.

2023 - “MAMMA MIA” Performs as a mainstage at states

Mamma Mia goes to states!

Over the past few years, the Gulf Coast Drama Department dedicated itself to providing opportunities for leadership, performance, and community. We had over 200 students involved with our club, performances, and Troupe activities. Our Leadership worked hard to provide new experiences for all students. In doing so, we frequently applied to receive feedback from various Thespian Officials across the state. We were proud to announce that our Fall production of "Mamma Mia!" was reviewed and selected to be performed at the Florida State Thespian Festival in Tampa last Spring. This was the largest Thespian event in the world, with over 10,000 attendees each year. Our students had the privilege of performing our fully-staged production at the Straz Center for the Arts.

It was truly a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. We asked for help from the community to make this dream a reality for our talented and hard-working students. The only obstacle we needed to overcome was funding the trip. Donations were sought to assist with the transportation of an entire set, along with costumes and props across the state, rental and transportation of technical equipment, hotel and transportation of the cast, crew, and chaperones, and the registration fees for the Festival.

We greatly appreciated the consideration of the community in donating to Gulf Coast Drama. With their generosity, they ensured that all of our students could continue to develop their leadership and performance skills. Any amount was helpful and we were sincerely thankful for their consideration.