For senior Mary Sass, the theatre is life.
“It’s probably the best thing that’s ever happened to me. I live, eat, sleep theatre. And if I didn’t do theatre for the rest of my life, I probably wouldn’t be happy. I couldn’t live the best life. I couldn’t live without it,” Sass said.
Drama teacher Marie Jones believes that Sass has what it takes to pursue a career in theatre arts.
“She’s disciplined, she’s patient, she’s determined and she never quits,” Jones said. “Mary Sass is one of the most outstanding actors I have ever taught. She has a great deal of natural talent. She is a strong and effective leader and she’s highly organized.”
Technical Theatre teacher Tim Domack knows what it takes to make it in the world of theatre.
“There are very few people that would actually be able to leave high school and jump right into a professional career, and I think what she’s got is that perfect base for pursuing a career because of the fact that she takes direction well and she’s easy to work with,” Domack said. “There are plenty of actors that I’ve worked with professionally and non-professionally that have an attitude, and you try to teach them something, and they aren’t wanting to listen, and she’s not that way.”
Sass has been heavily involved in our drama department since her freshman year.
As a senior she is co-captain of TROUPE, the Theatrical Repertoire of Unique Performance Education.
“She’s pretty much taken a leading role or a leading position in every single main-stage since her freshman year. She’s done excellently in doing so. She’s always been able to put her own touch to anything she’s involved in, whether it be a role, whether it be her directing, whether it be her leading ensemble,” senior Jaheal Milliam said.
Junior Alyssa Allen has known Sass and has been able to witness her growth in leading the drama department.
“She’s grown a lot from freshman year, from middle school even, as a person and an actress, and she should be proud of where she’s come,” Allen said.
Sass is responsible for many things in the drama department, and those in charge don’t doubt her skills.
“She’s a great ambassador for our department. She’s always smiling. She’s always positive. She doesn’t get into trouble. She’s not one that’s going to put a bad face on our department, and that goes a long way,” Domack said.
Sass and her co-captain, Milliam, take a unique approach to leading their TROUPE class with their opposite styles.
“I’m more of the fun side, and she’s more of the structured side, and that’s pretty much how we take things on,” Milliam said. “She always keeps people on their toes with making sure they’re meeting deadlines and making sure that they’re performing to the best of their ability. She would not hesitate to help critique anything.”
Sass has earned many awards such as Excellence in Acting and Most Outstanding actress at theatre competitions such as NCTC and Odyssey of the Mind.
“From receiving these awards I learned that I’m good at something! Like I learned that I’m very passionate about theatre, and from my high school experience, not only at competitions but at school, I’ve learned that this is something I want to do for the rest of my life, and that it’s my calling,” Sass said.
Domack believes that Sass is headed in the right direction to a successful career.
“She needs to keep her work ethic the way that it’s going. She needs to keep positive with regards to keeping in this career,” Domack said. “In this type of a career, it’s like a baseball player. The baseball player is going to swing and miss the ball more often than he’s going to hit it. If they hit the ball every time, they would be the best baseball player ever to play, but even the greatest baseball player has missed. Mary has that desire to succeed.”