The Kennedy Center American College Theater Festival (KCACTF) Region IV has presented two Hollins University seniors with prestigious awards in its Design, Technologies, and Management category.
Elizabeth Dion ’22 received the Stage Management Fellowship Award, while Nabila Meghjani ’22 won the Heart of the Art Award in Costume Design. Both were honored for their work on Hollins Theatre’s Main Stage production in October 2021 of Caryl Churchill’s The Skriker.
“According to the nominee list, 168 students in Region IV were nominated for the Stage Management Fellowship Award, and 71 were nominated for the Heart of the Art Award in Costume Design, so we’re extremely proud of both Liz and Nabila for their recognition,” said Assistant Professor of Theatre and Theatre Department Chair Wendy-Marie Martin.
The Stage Management Fellowship Award is earned based on professionalism and completeness of the prompt script and other paperwork; personal demeanor and communication skills based on interviews and at workshops; and written materials submitted prior to the KCACTF Region IV Festival. Dion, who is double majoring in theatre and international studies, will represent Region IV at the KCACTF National Festival in Washington, D.C., in April, and have the opportunity to present work and network with student and professional stage managers from across the country.
To earn a Heart of the Art Award, a student must be “deemed to have exhibited an immense amount of passion for their work,” according to the KCACTF. Meghjani, a double major in theatre and gender and women’s studies, typified the award’s standards for “a student who [the respondents] could tell poured every ounce of their energy into their project or their presentation.”
KCACTF is a national theater program involving 18,000 students annually from colleges and universities across the country. 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. KCACTF Region IV represents colleges and universities in Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Mississippi, North Carolina, Puerto Rico, South Carolina, Tennessee, U.S. Virgin Islands, and Virginia.
