Actors will compete in the annual Irene Ryan Scholarship Auditions for the Kennedy Center American College Theater Festival for region 7, which encompasses all or parts of nine western states. They won’t have far to go this year because the regionals are being held at American River College, Feb. 18-22. Regional winners will head to the Kennedy Center for the finals April 15-21.
A special Showcase Fundraiser Performance of the Sac State actors’ scenes will be staged in the University’s Playwrights’ Theatre on Feb. 11 and 14.
Eight Sacramento State students are in the competition, each with a scene partner for a total of 16 actors. Each competitor performs a three-minute, two-person scene in the preliminary round of the regionals, has five minutes to perform the first scene plus a contrasting two-person scene, and is given six minutes to present the scenes plus a monologue or solo musical number in the final round.
“We try to pick the first scene especially to showcase their individual strengths as performers,” says Theatre
