The Drama Club is a student-lead theatre club at the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse. The club recently began again spring of 2024, after the previous club disbanded due to struggles with the COVID-19 pandemic.
With the dedication from Club President Sage Goetsch and assistance from the rest of the Drama Club’s officers, the interest for student-lead theatre has reignited.
The Racquet Press sat down with Goetsch, Vice President Nick Bilyeu and Secretary Taylor Rammer after the club’s most recent meeting. Social Media Manager Paige Verbsky and Treasurer Avery Weston round out the rest of the club’s officers, but were not present for the interview.
“Our mission is…to work through student-lead theatre. We get a lot of opportunities to work on productions in the theatre department, but we don’t get a ton of chances for students to lead those productions,” said Goetsch, a fourth-year stage management student.
“I think this is offering a lot of students more chances to perform in smaller-scale environments, which might be more comfortable for some of them,” said Rammer, a fourth-year musical theatre performance student.
Some club performances will include improv nights and staged readings. This semester, the club will be performing a staged reading of “The Hen House” written by UWL alum Ronny Mickle. The club invites anyone, regardless of experience or area of study, to participate if they are interested.
“You can come in without a single show under your belt and we will…show you everything you need to know,” said Bilyeu, a fourth-year art student with a minor in theatre performance.
With the name “The Drama Club”, the officers felt people would assume the club is closed off to non-theatre majors or minors.
To help combat this assumption, the club held a trivia night on Sept. 1 in the E-Café of the Student Union. With over 100 students in attendance, the night was a success for the club and their visibility on campus.
“I really thought it would be a lot of theatre majors and minors that we knew…and for it to be mostly…incoming freshmen interested in theatre was huge. It made us realize that there is a need for this club,” said Rammer.
“We were able to get the word out very easily that, ‘Hey, this is open to everybody,’” said Bilyeu.
Another assumption the club works to overcome is that Drama Club is solely performance-based. In reality, there are chances for students to engage in all sides of theatre.
“Performance is something that is intimidating to a lot of people…so, people think, ‘Well, if it’s theatre, then I have to be on stage,’” said Goetsch.
“There are still opportunities for people who aren’t necessarily interested in performing but want to learn about lighting, sound, stage management, scenery design, directing…the production side…We have opportunities there,” said Goetsch.
In addition to a successful trivia night, the club also held a performance in collaboration with Vocal Ties, an on-campus acapella group, at this year’s Eagle Fest.
“It was… really cool to have…people who were just walking by hear us singing, and [it was] another opportunity for our musical theatre students to perform and show off some of their skills. We had pretty good audience feedback…it was very fun,” said Goetsch.
While the club is open to anyone, even if they aren’t theatre students or are just trying something new, the Drama Club is still a space for passionate theatre students to grow their love of the performing arts.
“I didn’t come to La Crosse for theatre…I came for English, and I was an English major for a year,” said Rammer. “Theatre found me here…it was probably the best decision I made in my life.”
Rammer continued, “I’ve met all of my friends through the theatre department. My life would not be what it is right now without it…the environment and the community that I’ve found within the theatre department is something that I hope that everyone finds at some point.”
“Doing the Drama Club and…[being] an officer, [it] makes me feel like…I’m offering that to other people. It’s a place where everyone can be themselves,” said Rammer.
The Drama Club’s next meeting will take place on Oct. 18 at 5 p.m. in 1303 Centennial Hall. Upcoming events include their improv night on Oct. 26 at 5:30 p.m. and their staged reading of “The Hen House” by Ronny Mickle Nov. 23 at 5 p.m. Both the improv night and the staged reading will be held in Frederick Theatre in Morris Hall.
More information about the Drama Club can be found on their Instagram and on their website.
