KCACTF BESTOWS NATIONAL HONORS ON REGION IV SHOWS
April 11, 2023 —
Three of the Region IV shows championed by our respondents and presented at Festival 55 have received special honors from the National office of the Kennedy Center American College Theatre Festival.
North Carolina Central University’s production of Najee Brown’s play The Bus Stop was singled out for the Kennedy Center Citizen Artist Award. This award recognizes programs in higher education using theatrical production to promote long-term societal impact through an artistic lens, to encourage empathetic exploration of the complex cultural and physical world, and to advocate for justice on campus and throughout the world.
Individual artists for The Bus Stop received honors as well:
- Jasmyn Harper — Distinguished Achievement in Stage Management
- Pamela Bond — Distinguished Achievement in Costume Design
- Kamilah Williams — Distinguished Performance by an Actor
Appalachian State University’s production of Jen Silverman’s play The Moors received honors in a new category: Distinguished Achievement in the Facilitation of a Brave Rehearsal Space. All of us who work in live theatre appreciate the merit of this award: it celebrates teaching artists who create a rehearsal room community that prioritizes the mental, physical, and emotional well-being of their student artists; empowering them to safely engage with challenging theatrical stories.
The entire company was recognized as the Region’s Distinguished Performance Ensemble.
Individual honors for artists for The Moors included:
- Brady Warlow – Distinguished Achievement in Stage Management
- Gray Fandel – Distinguished Achievement in Stage Management
- Harlowe Sousa – Distinguished Achievement in Stage Management
- Benjamin Perkins – Distinguished Achievement in Stage Management
- Alexa Nimitz – Distinguished Performance by an Actor
The College of Charleston’s production of Jeanine Tesori and Brian Crawley’s musical Violet received a remarkable number of honors and citations. The entire production was awarded Distinguished Achievement in Production Design
as well as Distinguished Performance and Production Ensemble
and Outstanding Production of a Musical.
The individual citations for artists for Violet were:
- Mollie Davis – Distinguished Achievement in Stage Management
- Max Marshall – Distinguished Achievement in Scenic Design
- Eddie Frye – Distinguished Achievement in Lighting Design
- Janine McCabe – Distinguished Achievement in Costume Design
- Gillian Huntley – Outstanding Performance by an Actor
- Spencer Vinzani – Distinguished Performance by an Actor
- Clyde Moser – Distinguished Performance by an Actor
- Skyler Huntley – Distinguished Performance by an Actor
- Nakeisha Daniel – Outstanding Director of a Musical
- Kristin Alexander – Outstanding Choreography
- Laura Turner – Distinguished Achievement in Musical Direction
- Nora Gore – Distinguished Achievement in Dramaturgy
- Noah Anderson – Distinguished Achievement in Dramaturgy
Our congratulations to everyone so honored! We are forever grateful to you for sharing your talent, craft, and energy with the rest of us in Region IV.
