Sul Ross Theatre Program awarded by Kennedy Center festival

Mar. 5—Sul Ross Theatre Program students Justin Hinton, of Dallas, and Olivia Pertuso, of Alpine, were invited to perform a scene from last fall's main stage production of "Oleanna" by David Mamet at the Region 6 Kennedy Center American College Theatre Festival in Abilene.

In October 2023, the production was held for regional festival consideration by KCACTF respondents, theatre faculty from West Texas A&M and Texas Tech University.

Hinton and Pertuso traveled to Abilene in late February to perform a selected scene at the four-day festival. Hinton, a senior theatre major, also advanced to the final round of the Region 6 KCACTF Musical Theatre Initiative competition, performing a song from "The Scarlet Pimpernel." Pertuso, a graduate student, was nominated for an Irene Ryan Acting Award and participated in the competition with monologues from "A Doll's House: Part II" by Lucas Hnath and "Antigone" by Sophocles.

KCACTF also recognized SRSU's production of "Oleanna" by honoring junior theatre major Jenna Reyes, of Alpine, and sophomore theatre major Marshall Jones, of Godley, with meritorious awards for stage management and properties design, respectively. Hinton and Owen Wyatt, of Dallas, served as Honor Crew for all productions throughout the festival.

Assistant Professor of Theatre and Industrial Technology Carolyn Barrientes won a meritorious award for her costume design and Professor of Theatre Ross Fleming served as the festival's Technical Director. Created in 1969 by Roger L. Stevens, the Kennedy Center's founding chairman, the KCACTF is a national theater program involving 18,000 students from colleges and universities nationwide. The KCACTF includes a network of more than 600 academic institutions throughout the country, where theater departments and student artists showcase their work and receive outside assessment by the festival's respondents.

Through state, regional and national festivals, KCACTF participants celebrate the creative process, see one another's work, and share experiences and insights within the community of theater artists. The KCACTF honors excellence of overall production and offers student artists individual recognition through awards and scholarships in playwriting, acting, criticism, directing and design.