Performing arts students shine at Kennedy Center Theatre Festival

University of Southern Indiana students, faculty and staff from the Philip H. Hagemann Performing Arts Department traveled to Flint, Michigan, January 10-15 to present the recent USI Theatre production of These Shining Lives and take part in acting and theater design competitions and workshops. Now in its 55th year, the American College Theatre Festival, sponsored by the Kennedy Center in Washington, DC, gathers thousands of college students from around the U.S. to “encourage, recognize and celebrate the finish and most diverse work produced in university and college theater programs.” This year marked the first in-person festival since 2020 due to the pandemic.

The U.S. is divided into eight regions, and Indiana is part of Region 3. Twenty-seven USI students and four faculty and staff members joined more than 900 other college students and faculty from Indiana, Wisconsin, Michigan and Ohio in Flint for this year’s regional festival.

In preparation for the festival, USI students and staff gathered five days ahead of the trip to practice setting up and packing up the scenery, lighting, costumes and props to quickly prepare the stage on the day of their first performance. Four students also prepared design presentations (three in costume design and one in scene design) as part of the Design, Tech and Production portion of the festival. Three acting students filmed and submitted audition monologues in advance, and two were chosen as semi-finalists to compete at the festival in the “Irene Ryan Scholarship Auditions,” named after the actress best known as “Granny” on the TV show “The Beverly Hillbillies.”

The Performing Arts Department would like to acknowledge the support of Del Doughty, Dean of the College of Liberal Arts; Dr. Mohammad Khayum, Provost; David Bower, USI Foundation President, and the USI Foundation. The USI Foundation has generously underwritten these invaluable trips for USI Theatre students to have their work critiqued, improve their skills and receive recognition for their achievements onstage and backstage. Charitable gifts from USI alumni, friends and employees to the USI Foundation have made these trips to the American College Theatre Festival possible.