KCACTF Again

I’m really looking forward to being able to showcase my talents at the Kennedy Center’s American College Theatre Festival in Omaha, Nebraska in a few weeks. I’m very excited to spend the week with my friends from Waldorf and see friends from other colleges, as well as make new ones. I was always heavily involved in Speech competitions in high school and have attended the Iowa Thespian Festival; they were all so much fun! One of my cousins has been to ACTF in the past and auditioned for the Irene Ryan scholarship. He said it was a lot of fun and just to make the best out of everything that happens, which I’m going to do. I’m really excited about meeting new people. It’s not just about me going to audition for a scholarship; it’s about making new friends and hopefully seeing some great shows and learning more about theatre in general. It’s getting to the point where I’m starting to actually get nervous, which doesn’t happen very often when dealing with theatre, because the festival is getting so close. I want to send out a quick thank you to Dr. Bob AuFrance and Professor Jeremy Fiebig for believing in me, being fantastic directors/teachers and helping me to choose my scenes. I couldn’t have possibly done this on my own and they’ve both been so helpful.

I’m very blessed to have such an amazing acting partner, too. I feel privileged to have Chris Parcher to share this wonderful experience with. Chris has been a great friend of mine since the beginning of the school year and it’s very easy for us to act together; it helps when you’ve already got that special bond with someone. I’m looking forward to acting alongside Chris for many years to come. I think it really helps to have somebody you can trust and share things with for this festival to go along smoothly. I’m excited for people to see my talents, but also Chris’s and Manny Elliott’s and Katy Snow’s talents, as well. I was so happy for Manny with he got nominated for the Irene Ryan scholarship; he really deserved to. I know that we’re sort of “competing” against each other for it, but, honestly, if Manny got it over me, it wouldn’t bother me one bit. Manny deserves it just as much, if not more, as I do. Katy’s also a very talented performer and deserved the spot as a partner. This next week will be hectic while getting things finalized and ready for ACTF, but I’m so incredibly excited for it all! I mean, a week off from classes, being around amazing friends, acting alongside some of the best, and meeting a ton of new people. What better experience is there? I can’t wait for this festival to begin!

Jessica Schiermeister