By Annette Kirk/campus editor
Festival creates opportunities
A collection of student plays will be performed when the SE Campus theater department hosts the Festival of New Plays Nov. 29-Dec. 2 at the C.A. Roberson Theatre.
The festival is composed of five plays written by SE students and selected by theater director Angela Inman along with other faculty and staff. The students who wrote the plays will see their works performed onstage with the assistance of Theater Practicum students.
“Our department offers students the opportunity to learn about playwriting and performance through our annual Festival of New Plays,” Inman said. “It is important for students to know that they can be proactive in creating performance opportunities rather than just passively waiting for someone else to hire them. We try to give students every possible advantage to succeed in an intensely competitive field.”
Adjunct instructor Megan Haratine is helping direct one of the plays called “Knock Knock” by SE student Dathon DeVaull.
As a director, Haratine said it is her job to find the “through line” that connects the playwright to the story and to the actors.
Photo by Peter Matthews/The Collegian
“This festival is such a unique opportunity for students who are beginning playwrights to see their work come to life and discover things in their work that they didn’t know was there,” Haratine said.
SE student Leo Vibal has been with the theater program for two years. He takes pride in being part of the program and said taking the classes has helped him grow as a person by learning real-life skills.
“Being a part of this festival is amazing,” Vibal said. “It’s like seeing all the organs of a human body come together and bringing it to life.”
The festival is hosted every year to allow students to explore talents and work with industry professionals such as Sharon Miller who is assisting in this year’s production and works professionally at local North Texas theaters.
After the performances, the audience can ask the playwrights and directors questions regarding the work.
Showtimes are 7:30 p.m. Nov. 29-Dec. 2 with a 1:30 p.m. matinee Dec. 1. Tickets cost $3 for non-TCC students and senior citizens, $6 for the general public and admission is free for TCC students.
For more information, contact the C.A. Roberson Theatre at se.theater@tccd.edu or 817-515-3599.
