Theatre students travel to a regional festival

Facebooktwitteryoutube

The Kennedy Center American College Theatre Festival (KCACTF) is a national theatre program with regional festivals across the country. The Muskingum University Theatre program attended the Region 2 festival in Pittsburgh, PA.  

The festival, which took place from Jan. 24-27, was an opportunity for students to showcase their work in previous productions, showcase their acting abilities, and to participate in workshops.  

“… it’s always a fun thing to see students get to do workshops that we can’t offer at Muskingum and different sorts of styles of theatre and it’s always really fun for them to come back and have like big ideas…,” said Cassie King, Associate Professor of Theatre. 

King, Professor of Theatre Dr. Diane Rao, and 16 students went to this year’s festival, which is almost twice the number of students who typically attend for Muskingum.  

“It was nice to have them all and they all presented different things in different areas of theatre, so we had a lot of Muskingum representation there which is really cool,” King said. 

Another attendee that went to the regional KCACTF wasn’t a student, professor, or even human. Susan, a puppet used in the October production of “Arden of Feversham,” tagged along with the students to Pittsburgh.  

“…were that program that was carrying around a kind of creepy puppet the entire time but, you know, Susan got a lot out of the festival too and we like her. So she’s kind of our mascot,” said King.  

Next year’s KCACTF for region two takes place Jan. 15-18, 2025 with the location to be announced.

Posted in Local News, Muskingum University | Tagged , , | Comments Off on Theatre students travel to a regional festival

University community comes together to serve

Facebooktwitteryoutube

Martin Luther King, Jr. Day is a day of remembrance for his work and legacy as a civil rights leader. For Muskingum University, it is also a chance to give back to the community. 

Muskingum University organized it’s annual Martin Luther King, Jr. Day of Service where 56 members of the university community came together, including 35 students, 13 employees, three employee family members, and five alumni.  

“To be able to take our students and say, you know, ‘here’s a day where you could sleep in or you could go home for a long three-day weekend but you could also be able to embrace this value that Muskingum really epitomizes and say let’s go out into our community and give back in a way,’” said Valerie Smith, Director of Cultural Engagement & Inclusion. 

Volunteers worked from 8:30 a.m.-12:30 p.m. where they were treated to a free lunch. As their community service for the day came to an end, volunteers were asked a series of reflection questions.

“As the director of cultural engagement and inclusion, I really like the fact that this project, this day of service, really also highlights the legacy of Martin Luther King and that ability to have social change and connections within the community,” said Smith.

Those who participated assisted groups like Habitat for Humanity, Breaking Free Therapeutic Riding Center, Beckett House, and the New Concord Area Arts & Recreation District (NCAARD). 

Posted in Local News, Muskingum University | Tagged , , | Comments Off on University community comes together to serve