Alpha Psi Omega

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Alpha Psi Omega (ΑΨΩ) is the American National Theater Honors Fraternity. The Alpha cast (Alpha Psi Omega's designation for "chapter") was founded at Fairmont College in 1925 by professor Paul F. Opp. There are currently 977 casts nationwide, including inactives.

Membership is open to those who are active in their college theatre. One must participate in a certain number of shows and receive points to be considered for membership. With some chapters there is a rush and pledge process, while other chapters choose members solely on merit and are chosen among current members, where the theatre experience is considered the pledge process.

1 Fraternity Symbols
2 History
3 Famous Alpha Psi Omega Members
4 External links

[edit] Fraternity Symbols

Motto: To seek a life useful: We seek to become humble artists through the one and only road of labor and service.

Colors: Light Blue and Amber (In reference to "No Color Blue" and "Bastard Amber," the two most popular theatre lighting gels)

Flower: African Violet

Alpha Psi Omega also has an official Toast Song.

[edit] History

In 1921, at Fairmont State College in Fairmont, West Virginia, college theatre took root. A faculty director was hired in 1923, and The Masquers were formed. The Masquers were charged with presenting a season of 4 to 5 major productions per year for students and the general public. In 1924, The Masquers began searching for a national honorary organization to join. As there was no truly national organization, Elinor B. Watson, Robert Sloan, and Fairmont faculty director Paul F. Opp researched forming such and organization.

As a result of their research and work, a proposed national constitution was drawn up, and, on August 12, 1925, the first cast of Alpha Psi Omega, drawn from The Masquers, was initiated. It was then decided that each chapter was to be called a "cast", and Fairmont College became the Alpha Cast. Soon after, Marshall College in Huntington, West Virginia expressed interest in chartering a cast of Alpha Psi Omega; they founded the Beta Cast. A member from Huntington suggested the name "Playbill" for the national magazine, which was thereafter adopted.

Over the course of the following year, eighteen more casts were founded. When the first national convention was held on December 27-28, 1926 at the Palmer House in Chicago, twenty casts had been chartered. These national conventions, also known as Grand Rehearsals, are now held once every 5 years.

In 1929, after significant interest on the junior college level, Delta Psi Omega was formed. In 1936, at the Alpha Psi Omega Grand Rehearsal, Delta Psi Omega was officially recognized as the junior college division of Alpha Psi Omega. Today, there are over 350 Delta Psi Omega casts.