Lars Johnson
Antelope Staff
While at the 49th annual Kennedy Center American College Theatre Festival Jan. 22, 12 students and three UNK faculty broadened their horizons attending workshops and networking.
UNK junior theatre major Anthony Knudson of Humboldt explains work on props for UNK’s productions of “The Threepenny Opera” and “How I Became a Pirate.” Among the props he brought were a beggar’s stump leg, which intrigued the audience, and a set of comically oversized handcuffs.
“Seeing productions and seeing what’s going on in the outside world actually makes us better theatre artists, because then we’re more aware of how the world works outside of our little bubble. For our students, it’s a wonderful opportunity for networking, job hunting, and experiencing things that we as faculty might not have time to teach. It’s supplemental learning and an excellent opportunity for students,” said Sara Ice, UNK theatre faculty and Vice Chair of Design, Technology, and Management of Region 5 for KCACTF.
Students and faculty attended workshops with topics ranging from where to go with a theatre degree after college, to lighting and set design workshops, playwriting, dance and even theatre’s place in today’s society. These workshops were led by students and faculty from around the region, and some were even led by UNK faculty themselves.
“Here at UNK, we are geographically challenged, and don’t have access to a lot of resources in the arts, and that’s why this festival is so important for students,” Ice said.
This year’s festival showcased the fine arts scene in Des Moines and participants visited some of the venues in the city, such as the Kum & Go Theater located in a renovated firehouse downtown, and the historic Hoyt Sherman theatre built in 1923.
KCACTF Region 5 is an annual event that brings together hundreds of college theatre students and faculty from around the Midwest region to encourage and celebrate the work that university and college theatre programs do across the region and provide opportunities for students to further develop their skills.
During the year prior to the festival, judges associated with the organization travel to college productions and select students to compete in acting competitions at the festival, as well as invite entire productions to perform at the festival.
Students also submit technical or design projects to bring and display. This year, four UNK students and their acting partners competed in the Irene Ryan Scholarship Auditions, an acting competition where the winners go on to compete in the national competition at the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington DC.
Students were also able to register to audition for professional theatre companies around the region, in hopes of getting a summer job doing professional work and building their resumes.
Throughout the week, participants attend various college theatre productions invited to come perform at the festival. Productions touched on different topical themes such as sexual assault in schools, women’s empowerment, water conservation and environmentalism, to name a few.
