Point Park University hosting regional Kennedy Center American College Theater Festival

Taking advantage of a site cancellation in Pittsburgh for the opening reception of the Kennedy Center American College Theater Festival, Point Park University not only hosted that reception, but some theater students became part of the event, too.

“We said we would gladly host, and discovered an opportunity for our theater students to be involved,” said Teresa A. Gregory, professor and acting chair for the theatre department and Conservatory of Performing Arts at Point Park University in Downtown, Pittsburgh.

The Kennedy Center American College Theater Festival is a national organization promoting the educational and creative process of university and college theatre. It was founded 56 years ago and involves 18,000 students annually.

When they heard of the cancellation, festival organizers inquired about using the new Pittsburgh Playhouse as the site for the opening reception, which was held on Wednesday. Through discussions about the opening reception, university representatives inquired about how they could become more involved and learned that their theater students could also be part of the festival, being held at various venues in the Pittsburgh area through Saturday.

The events are not open to the public but there are opportunities for students and faculty to attend various sessions to help them develop skills and insight of their craft.

Point Park welcomed students from Maryland, New Jersey, Washington, D.C., Ohio, West Virginia and parts of New York and Virginia from 115 participating schools. Five college and university theatre programs were invited to share productions at which national respondents from the Kennedy Center offer feedback and recognize accomplishments.

Part of the feedback was a critique of Point Park’s performance of Jonas Hassen Khemiri’s play “Almost Equal To” on Thursday. The university performed that play on campus in December. Fortunately, they kept the theater set intact, Gregory said.

This is the first time for Point Park to host such an event.

“This is an incredible opportunity for our Conservatory of Performing Arts students across all majors including actors, designers, stage managers, and more,” Garfield Lemonius, dean of the conservatory of performing arts and artistic director of the Pittsburgh Playhouse, said in a statement.

“As a 2004 alumni, I am thrilled to be returning to campus in the Pittsburgh Playhouse and to bring theatre students from across our region to experience the same level of professionalism I was able to during my years at Point Park,” Seth Werner, theatre arts and manager of this Kennedy Center Festival region 2, said in a statement.

It is so important for the students to get feedback on their craft, Gregory said, adding that the new Playhouse was a selling point. The 90,411 square-foot center for arts and entertainment serves as an artistic laboratory for the Conservatory of Performing Arts and Downtown Pittsburgh’s home for arts and entertainment.

“This is a wonderful, unique opportunity,” Gregory said. “This is exposure for the university and the students and the theater program. It’s a trifecta.”