Broadway would be lucky to have Sakia Hunter, Leecy Silk and Josh Thomas on their stage. Instead, Dominion has been lucky to be the source of their talent in productions like Bye Bye Birdie to You’re A Good Man, Charlie Brown, showcasing their acting and incredible voices as their passionate performances undoubtedly inspired anyone in the audience.

They each started off at freshman year auditions with different expectations. While Josh and Leecy had previous exposure to the arts with local productions and dance, Saskia went simply because her sister forced her to. Nevertheless, each of them expressed their gratitude for Doc and this program as it provided a community and home to nurture them in a new school.

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Courtesy of the Yearbook

Getting ready for a performance Saskia Hunter has entertained Titans in various roles, winning a Cappie for her performance in The Miracle Worker

“You don’t have to be an amazing actor or singer to do shows. There is a place for everyone in theater, and it is ok if you aren’t the best,” said Hunter, who is attending Brigham Young University next year. 

It gave each of them a place to express themselves and improve, to learn valuable life lessons and create even more important friendships. Thomas, who will be on the stage at Liberty University next year, said, “High school is supposed to be the time in your life when you figure out more about who you are and what you enjoy doing. For me, it just happened to be performing.” 

Both experiences backstage and in the spotlight were an integral part of culminating their friendships, and these three seniors have remembered some of their most important moments. “I think one of my favorite moments during my freshman year was when Leecy Silk, Matthew Cahill, a few others, and I were backstage during a show playing card,” remembered Hunter, who won the 2018 Cappie for the Best Supporting Actress in a Play for her role as Helen Keller in The Miracle Worker.

Silk, who plans on majoring in psychology and music at William & Mary next year, remembered the pranks pulled on her in the black box and the first time she ever tried Taco Bell before a show. “Honestly, there are too many good memories to name them all,” she said. 

“These three thespians were prepared to give the performance of their lives in Singin in the Rain. Their willingness to work to put the show on video will be a testament to their ability to handle anything challenge that comes their way,” Doc reminisced. “They are living the theatre motto that the show must go on.”

In addition, Thomas recalled one of the most important times for a young actor, “My favorite backstage memory is the moment right before you go onto the stage for the first time, and the lights come up on you. It’s right in that moment that you cross over from yourself to the person you are supposed to be playing that is really nerve racking, but at the same time exciting.”

On stage, however, these three young thespians display their ability to take over the mindset of and become their characters. The evident joy they get from doing so was one of Doc’s favorite things to see, and she remembers them fondly. 

“All three of them have set the bar for professionalism in their dedication to rehearsals and their craft, and, more importantly, their willingness to help others be their best,” Doc remarked. One of her favorite performances was by Saskia in Our Town; a final monologue delivered with “the sincerity of emotion that she brought to the moment brought the audience to tears and revelations,” explained theater teacher and director Doc as one of the main goals of theater.

Although audiences won’t be able to behold the wonder of this famous scene in these seniors’ last show, Singin’ In the Rain, those who saw this at rehearsal marveled at the sight. The day that the rain finally worked on stage, allowing Thomas to rehearse his song in a fabricated downpour, marked an important occasion. “The joy on his face will stay with me forever,” Doc remembered. 

This also wasn’t the last of great happiness shared between director and student.  “My favorite memory of Leecy is the day she came back after leaving the theatre after a performance of Bye, Bye Birdie when she learned that we were doing Charlie Brown. The tears of joy she shared with us is the reason I teach and direct,” Doc said. 

It’s evident that each of these seniors has contributed so much of their time and energy to this program over the past four years. They’ve proved their skill and clear leadership ability by volunteering extra time to help out underclassmen and anyone else who may need it, as well as keeping cool in the most stressed situations. 

As leaders in the class of 2020, both on and off the stage, we’d all do good to take some of their last pieces of advice to heart. One large theme among the troupe expresses the importance of being yourself and enjoying what you do on stage. Thomas explained, “You really have to get past what you think others may think of you and do what makes you, you.”