Theatre & Drama Students

American College Theatre Festival

U-M Theatre students have opportunities to excel at the annual American College Theatre Festival. A great many of our students have won design and/or acting awards at the annual ACTF Region III competitions (Michigan/Indiana/Illinois/Wisconsin) every year since 1992, when we began our annual participation. A number of these awards have been first-place prizes, with a trip to the Kennedy Center in April for nationwide competitions for scholarships and awards.

In January 1999, we entered a full production in the Region III festival — Samuel Beckett's Endgame. Kevin Judge (Design & Production BFA) won the Barbizon Set Design Award for his Endgame design.

Congratulations to all our recent ACTF Award Winners!

ACTF 2010:

Kennedy Center American College Theatre Festival Playwrighting Fellowship — OyamO

Regional Design Projects (unrealized projects) —

Scenic Design: Corey Lubowich (Othello); Michael Bou-Maroun, Honorable Mention (Othello)

Costume Design: Andrew Hill, Honorable Mention (Electra)

Lighting Design: Mary Clare Blake-Booth, (Electra); Michelle Bryan, Honorable Mention (Electra)

Special Certificate of Merit: Marguerite Woodward, set and costume design, (Othello)

Barbizon Awards —

Lighting Design: Honorable Mention, Betsy Lynch, Tartuffe.

ACTF 2009:

Irene Ryan Awards - Semi Finalists
Joe Moses (nominated for Madmen & Specialists) with partner Seth Moore

Lee Tyler (nominated for You Never Can Tell) with partner Jaime Lyn Beatty
Performance Awards for Associate or Participating Productions:
Certificate of Merit — Company Performance, You Never Can Tell

“Madmen” — Corey Dorris, Seth Moore, Joe Moses, and Joseph Walke, Ensemble Performance, Madmen & Specialists

Regional Design Projects — Betsy Lynch, Best Lighting Design (unrealized)

Designs for Associate or Participating Productions:

Justin Lang, Second Place - Scenic Design, Madmen & Specialists
KC/ACTF Stage Management Award:
Mitchell Hodges, Honorable Mention, Pride & Prejudice

Angela Kiessel, Honorable Mention, Rent
Bronze Medal & Certificate of Merit in the Tech Olympia:

Stephanie Shechter and Adam McCarthy
Entire UM Team - Congeniality Award for their team spirit

ACTF 2008:

Regional Design Projects — Justin Lang, best lighting design, Titus Andronicus (unrealized)

Barbizon Honorable Mention — Justin Lang, lighting design, Two by Fassbinder
Barbizon Award for Theatrical Design Excellence in Scenery Design — Elyse Handelman, Two by Fassbinder
KC/ACTF Stage Management Award — Stephanie Shechter, J.B. (This was the third year in a row a UM student won.)