By Kiara Catanzaro
Staff Writer
Students from St. Bonaventure’s theater department participated in the Kennedy Center American College Theater Festival (KCACTF) at Towson University in Towson, Md. last week. The festival is an opportunity for theater students to partake in various workshops and participate in different productions. Multiple students from the theater department were nominated for awards held at the festival this year.
Makeda Loney, a junior journalism and mass communication major, said the annual theater trip broadened her horizons and gave her a unique artistic outlet.
“Every year, the theater department takes a trip to the regional theater festival,” Loney said. “It’s a great educational experience to learn about the different types of theater through workshops and shows that are brought in by other participating universities. Students also have the opportunity to showcase their work through design competitions and showcases, (winning) various awards for their hard work.”
Loney was originally attending the festival as a scene partner with junior journalism and mass communication and theater major Frederick Alvarez, but that changed when she was also nominated for the Irene Ryan Acting Scholarship.
Senior Emily West also attended various productions throughout the theater trip.
“I was lucky to see productions of “Tick, Tick…Boom!,” “The Bacchae 2012,” “For Sale” and “The Walls.” “My favorite was ‘The Bacchae,’ by the University of Akron,” West said. “It was a reimagined version of the classic Greek play designed to address current issues of sexual identity and discrimination.”
West won the regional award for her design work on Jose Rivera’s “The Winged Man.”
“I entered designs in the Design Tech Management competition and won the regional award in the allied design and crafts category for my work on “The Winged Man,” West said.
West said she would continue to attend future theater festivals even after graduating.
“This was my last year attending the festival,” West said. “Every year has been a great learning experience and taking in art with my peers. It will definitely be something I will miss attending after I graduate.”
The Bona family stood together throughout the excitement and high competition of the festival. Loney described how the students in the theater department became closer friends from the experience.
“I had an amazing time and got much closer with the friends I have in the theater department,” she said. “We went to various shows and supported each other during the acting competitions.
