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NACC Theatre, Preparing Students for
the Future, Represented at SETC
Recently, seven Northeast Alabama Community College students
traveled to the Southeastern Theatre Conference (SETC) in
Birmingham. Two of those students auditioned with approximately
900 other college students for over 150 companies who were
seeking performers for their theatre companies. Both students,
Autumn Brown and Kayleigh Smith, received requests for further
interviews for paid theatre positions with companies such as RWS
& Associates of New York, Unto These Hills of North Carolina,
Flat Rock Playhouse of North Carolina, Texas Musical Drama of
Texas, Student Life of Birmingham, Circa 21 Dinner Playhouse of
Illinois, and Missoula Children’s Theatre of Montana.
All students who attended the convention were able to take
advantage of the opportunities offered at SETC including
hundreds of workshops, highly acclaimed speakers, commercial and
college exhibits, and 40 play performances. One of the most
outstanding speakers was Eugene Lee, a gentleman who holds three
Tony Awards for set design for Leonard Bernstein's Candide,
Stephen Sondheim's Sweeney Todd, and Stephen Schwartz's
Wicked. In addition to work on Broadway, Mr. Lee also has
been the set designer for Saturday Night Live since its
inception in 1974.
One NACC student, Devin Kennamer of Henagar, was a volunteer
worker at the convention. “We were honored to have a volunteer
chosen from NACC out of the hundreds of applicants who wanted
these positions,” said Regan McClung, Theatre Office Manager.
“Not only was a current student chosen as a volunteer, we had
NACC alumni who were returning volunteers. Cody Moore of Pisgah,
Taylor Campbell of Arab, and Brenton Bellomy of Scottsboro, now
theatre scholarship students at UAB, all volunteered with SETC
this year. Nanette Harbuck, the volunteer coordinator, said,
‘You sent me such good folks last year, I’m looking forward to
working with you again.’ What an honor to be recognized on a
regional level for the hardworking, dedicated students that NACC
has produced,” continued McClung.
The NACC theatre trains students to embrace their passions while
at the same time helping them to achieve their goals.
Conferences such as SETC provide the students the opportunity,
training, and experience to become effective communicators and
become successful in the demanding world of theatre. The wide
array of professional audition opportunities offered at NACC
gives students the training to face tough auditions for
scholarships, roles, and job interviews.
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“We are
very proud our students’ accomplishments and the
outstanding work done by our Theatre staff,” stated Dr.
David Campbell, NACC President. “We are pleased to be
able to sponsor our students’ participation in this
competition and consider it a part of their educational
experiences and training for the future. Our Theatre
Guild, led by Mrs. Susan Metcalf, also helps financially
support this project and special thanks to them. As with
everything we do at Northeast, we want it to be the
best, and the accomplishments of our Theatre program
certainly attest to how well our staff and students are
doing.”
For more
information on the NACC Theatre, call McClung at
638-4418 or 228-6001, ext. 218, or go to the
NACC Theatre webpage.
(Left)
Autumn Brown and Kayleigh Smith as they head to
professional auditions.
(Below)
Pictured from left are (front) Devin Kennamer of Henagar, Kayleigh Smith of Rainsville, and Ally Nelson of Fort
Payne; (back) Autumn Brown of Pisgah, Judy Nicole Kirby
of Pisgah, Chris Phillips of Sylvania, and Cody Webb of
Huntsville. |
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