College of Fine and Applied Arts

By Nancye Edwards

Playcrafters, a student organization at Appalachian State University, will present the 2017 New Play Festival March 23–25 at 7 p.m. in the I.G Greer Studio Theatre on the university’s campus. Tickets are $5 for students and $6 for the general public and will be sold at the door a half hour prior to each performance. 

The festival, which showcases one-act plays created and produced entirely by Appalachian students, will feature six original works:

• “In Retrospect,” written by junior communication major Faith Hatton of Fayetteville and directed by senior theatre arts major Ian Lawrence of Raleigh and assistant director Tripp Taylor, a senior recreation major from Boone.
• “Masterpiece,” written by Bridget Mundy ’16 and directed by Amanda Ufer, a senior theatre education major from Richmond, Virginia.
• “Requiem for Benjamin Spock,” written by senior English major Jaraad Samad of Raleigh and directed by Grace Schaffner, a senior language, literature and culture major from Gastonia.
• “Hell Will be a Waiting Room,” written by Madison Bergstedt, a senior apparel design and merchandising major from Winterville and directed by senior theatre arts major Doc Pope of Lenoir.  
• “Waiting Games,” written by Ian Lawrence and directed by Krystopher Paschen, a junior theatre education major from Lincolnton.
• “Tace,” written by senior theatre arts major Jenna Tonsor of Archdale and directed by junior economics major Joe Hermann of Matthews and senior theatre arts major Lauren Asbury of Charlotte.

A panel of students and faculty members selected the plays and directors from applications submitted during the 2016 spring semester. Each show has held rehearsals since casting in January 2017.

Cratis Williams and Rogers Whitener founded Playcrafters in 1933, making the club one of the oldest student organizations at the university. The student group fosters enthusiasm for theatre by providing opportunities for students to increase their skills through production aspects such as writing, directing and acting. Along with the New Play Festival, Playcrafters presented the 24-hour Play Festival in the fall of 2016.

Eighteen Appalachian students are involved in the New Play Festival productions this year: Jordan Matthews, a sophomore theatre arts major from Greensboro; Mary Elizabeth Myrick, a sophomore English major from Charlotte; Finn Regan, a junior theatre arts major from Holly Springs; Emma Siplon, a senior interdisciplinary studies major from Carrboro; Andrew Burchett, a sophomore theatre arts major from Huntersville; Jake Roberts, a senior communication major from Hickory; Morgan White, a junior theatre arts major from Elizabeth City; Shane Buchheit, a freshman theatre arts major from Boone, Max Probst, a junior theatre performance major from Charlotte; Ryan Haynes, a junior health care management major from Hendersonville; Cameron Underwood, a freshman theatre arts major from Chapel Hill; Hannah Daniels, a sophomore theatre arts major from Hendersonville; Matt Denney, a senior theatre arts major from Camden; Anna Allman, a junior history education major from Durham; Daniel Adkins, a freshman English major from Henderson; Erin Turner, a junior theatre arts major from Stuart, Virginia; Kenny Petroski, a senior theatre arts major from Davidson; and Michele Zaremba, a junior theatre arts major from Raleigh.   

 

Playcrafters is still accepting student-written one act plays for next year’s New Play Festival.  Questions regarding eligibility for consideration, as well as original student plays, can be submitted to appstateplaycrafters@gmail.com. For more information, visit https://theatreanddance.appstate.edu.

Media Contact
Joe Hermann
hermannjj@appstate.edu

About the Department of Theatre and Dance

The Department of Theatre and Dance is one of seven departments housed in Appalachian’s College of Fine and Applied Arts. Its mission is to facilitate transformative experiences for students and the public, which cultivate compassionate, creative and collaborative communities through theatre and dance. The department also offers coursework for integrated learning through the arts to the general university student population. Its dynamic co-curricular production program provides exemplary theatre and dance experiences to departmental students, the university community and the region.

About Appalachian

Appalachian State University, in North Carolina’s Blue Ridge Mountains, prepares students to lead purposeful lives as global citizens who understand and engage their responsibilities in creating a sustainable future for all. The transformational Appalachian experience promotes a spirit of inclusion that brings people together in inspiring ways to acquire and create knowledge, to grow holistically, to act with passion and determination, and embrace diversity and difference. As one of 17 campuses in the University of North Carolina system, Appalachian enrolls about 18,000 students, has a low student-to-faculty ratio and offers more than 150 undergraduate and graduate majors.

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• Theatre and Dance