Artist of the Issue-: Cora Turk-Thomas

Turk-Thomas’s theater journey started in elementary school, where it was mandatory to participate in the yearly production. Ever since their first play in elementary school, Turk-Thomas has “loved the experience” and since then has “done theater as long as [they] can remember”. The first time Turk-Thomas tried working from behind the stage instead of acting  was “in third grade. It wasn’t really formal stuff, but they needed someone to open and close the curtains. So [they] were backstage.” The next time they did tech was for the musical “Mamma Mia!” when they were in ninth grade: “We kind of needed a couple of other people backstage moving furniture, so we put [them] down to house manage.” 

Turk-Thomas has had many memorable moments during their time in the Hopkins Drama Association (HDA). One of them was a mishap during “Twelfth Night” on closing night: “I was bringing on the fountain and I had a little bit of trouble attaching it because you have to plug it in and then tape [the cord] down to the ground because people go behind the fountain and you don’t want them to trip over the extension cord.” This prop set up caused “a little bit of trouble with that and everybody else had gotten off stage and Sophia, who was the production stage manager didn’t see me so she put the lights up on me and I was crouching behind it.” 

Another memorable moment was two years ago when “I did tech for the Winter One Acts in 2023. I was a runner for that also, so I helped move on and off the stuff. Three days before the show, Grace Zhang ’25, the props manager, had three lockers on wheels fall onto her foot.” Due to the injury, Turk-Thomas had to quickly fill in the role as props manager: “I started rehearsing but there were a couple of days left so I had to fill her role because she was on crutches and she couldn’t move all this stuff, so it was very interesting getting kind of thrown into the train.”

Playing such an important role in the theater world at Hopkins has helped Turk-Thomas gain skills that they use in other parts of their lives.  They said, “It’s helped me get a bit better at communicating with people” and at being “loud and authoritative.” Being stage manager has also “helped me learn how to speak up for myself.”

Turk-Thomas has also helped others grow into leadership roles within HDA. Sophia Dossantos ’27, a good friend of Turk-Thomas, described Turk-Thomas as "really important in keeping the show running, and also  [...] a really positive person, and [...] really kind and helpful and responsible.” Dossantos recalled Turk-Thomas playing a huge part in helping her when Dossantos had been the assistant stage manager (ASM) while Turk-Thomas was the PSM during “39 Steps,” which allowed her to learn from watching Turk-Thomas. Dossantos said, “I recently did my first show as PSM, and they were just so supportive, and I also was their ASM for one show, and so a lot of things I learned about stage managing, I learned from them, and so they’ve been really helpful in teaching me how HDA works, and how stage managing works.” Natalie Billings ’27 has also looked up to Cora during her time in  HDA. Billings said that Turk-Thomas has not only “been a huge part of HDA” but also that “Cora’s love for theater inspires people. Seeing someone who loves it that much makes the whole, all the vibes of HDA better.” Billings explained, “They’re inspiring. They’re always smiling, and it’s good to see a smiley face, because we get really stressed on a school day, and then you get to go to rehearsal, and see them smiling at you, and it can mean a lot.” Billings is left with the impression that Turk-Thomas “is so good at what they do, and it’s been super helpful to look up to [them].” 

As Turk-Thomas prepares to graduate from Hopkins, everyone who shared a fun, memorable moment, will carry it with them throughout the rest of their life. “I hope to see everyone again, and I will come back to each performance," said Turk-Thomas.