Festival Allows Students to Shine
Student’s at the University of Oklahoma’s Helmerich School of Drama were able to let their talents truly shine at the Faith Broome Young Playwright’s Festival this past Tuesday evening.
The festival, which took place on campus in the Old Science Hall’s Lab Theater, changed things up this year. While the previous four years that the festival has taken place focused on the works of professional playwrights, this year, the plays presented were actually written, directed and acted by students.“We normally have a playwright come workshop a play with us,” said Kasey Weir, a junior acting major at OU who also acted in the festival. “For some reason that didn’t work out as we were hoping, so we decided to just have our own students write the plays and direct them.”
Actor Oliver Archibald and actress Kasey Weir during their play "The Life
and Death of Milly and Milly"
PHOTO: Meghan Whiting
Instead of a single play, this year’s Faith Broome Young Playwright’s Festival consisted of six, 10 minute plays that focused on the concept of change. For example, the play “Changing” by John Steele, Jr., focused on a newly married couple and their relationship, which began to slowly fall apart due to the demands and pressures to succeed in the workplace. Another play, “Always Another” by Terra Dray, focused first on three teenagers all struggling with loss, drugs and an alcoholic parent. At the end of the play it showed them a few years down the road in an AA meeting, as they had all learned this as a coping mechanism for their past.
According to the Helmerich School of Drama’s catalogue website, “The school’s commitment to new works adds to the exciting atmosphere that permeates the student’s academic career.” This is why the Faith Broome Young Playwright’s Festival is so important, because it gives students the chance to share their hard work and talent with their community.
"We’re the second oldest program in the country, so we have a lot of alumni,” said Dr. Judith Pender, the producer of the Faith Broome Young Playwright’s Festival. “The people who created the Yale School of Drama created ours.”
While Oklahoma may not seem like the premier state to begin a career in acting, those at the Helmerich School of Drama are glad they found the school and are excited for the future.
“I had no where I wanted to go until I started looking into theater schools and found OU,” said Weir. “We have alumni everywhere so anywhere you go whether it be L.A., New York, Chicago or Dallas there’s people everywhere willing to help you get your foot in the door, which is really helpful since my ultimate goal is to be on Broadway...at least just once.”
AUDIO: Meghan Whiting, runtime ;17
