FIU Theatre production named one of the best in Southeast

MIAMI – FIU Theatre’s production of “The Cook” by Cuban-American writer Eduardo Machado was entered in Kennedy Center’s American College Theatre Festival (KCACTF) and has been selected as one of the finest productions in the Southeastern region.

The cast and crew of “The Cook” were invited to compete against four other top productions from Troy University, Tennessee State University, University of Central Florida and University of North Carolina.  The competition will take place at the Regional Kennedy Center American College Theatre Festival in Greensboro, NC from Feb. 3 through Feb. 8. The winning production from the regional festival will be invited to perform at the annual national festival at Kennedy Center in Washington D.C. in April, all expenses paid.

A benefit performance has been scheduled on Jan. 31, 2009 at 2 p.m. to help raise the necessary funds to cover student travel expenses to Greensboro, NC.  The performance will take place in the Herbert & Nicole Wertheim Performing Arts Center, Main Stage.  Tickets are $25 for admission.  To learn more visit http://carta.fiu.edu or call Event Information at 305-348-0496.

The KCACTF production respondents were very impressed with the detailed and professional acting, design, construction and running of the “The Cook.”  They enjoyed that the production reflected the history, issues and diversity of the Miami community.

In addition, FIU Theatre student Pedro Mir’s original play “Lasgrimas Negras,” has also been selected as a finalist for the play competition at the Regional KCACTF.

Started in 1969 by founding chairman Roger L. Stevens, the KCACTF is a national program involving 18,000 students from colleges and universities nationwide.  It has served as a catalyst in improving the quality of college theater in the United States.

The KCACTF has grown into a network of more than 600 academic institutions throughout the country where theater departments and student artists showcase their work and receive evaluation by KCACTF respondents.

Through state, regional, and national festivals, KCACTF participants celebrate the creative process, are able to watch works by all participants, and share experiences and insights within the community of theater artists.  Regional festival productions are judged by a panel of three judges selected by the Kennedy Center and the KCACTF national committee. These judges, in consultation with the artistic director, select four to six of the best and most diverse regional festival productions to be showcased in the spring at the annual national festival at the Kennedy Center.

The KCACTF honors excellence of overall production and offers student artists individual recognition through awards and scholarships in playwriting, acting, criticism, directing, and design.  The playwriting chair works with schools that have entered new student-written plays by providing expertise in the development of new scripts and by providing information on the numerous playwriting awards offered.

Since its inception, KCACTF has given more than 400,000 college theater students the opportunity to have their work critiqued, improve their dramatic skills and receive national recognition for excellence. More than 16 million theatergoers have attended approximately 10,000 festival productions nationwide.

 Media Contact: Jessica Rodriguez at 305-348-6648 or jrodr097@fiu.edu.

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About FIU:

Florida International University was founded in 1965 and is Miami’s only public research university. With a student body of more than 38,000, FIU graduates more Hispanics than any other university in the country. Its 17 colleges and schools offer more than 200 bachelor’s, master’s and doctoral programs in fields such as engineering, international relations and law. FIU has been classified by the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching as a “High Research Activity University.” In 2006 FIU was authorized to establish a medical school, which will welcome its first class in 2009. FIU’s College of Law recently received accreditation in the fastest time allowed by the American Bar Association.