Two COC Students Make Finals at American College Theatre Festival
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Lee Barnathan | News | February 21, 2019
Gazette Editor and College of the Canyons student Sarah Farnell made history when she and fellow COC student Fox Smith were named Region VIII finalists in the Kennedy Center American College Theatre Festival’s Irene Ryan Acting Scholarship competition. It was the first time COC students reached the finals.
The regional festival, which brings together 400 students from various public and private two-year, Mark Cortez (left) and Fox Smith (right) undergraduate and graduate programs from Arizona, Central and Southern California, Hawaii, Southern Nevada, Guam and Utah, took place last week at Los Angeles Theatre Center. 1/2 Farnell said she performed a one-minute monologue from “The Monogamist” by Christopher Kyle and a two-minute scene from the 1974 play “Seascape with Sharks and Dancer” by Don Nigro in the preliminary rounds. She thought that since she was competing against more advanced students, she wouldn’t reach the later rounds, but when she did, she had to scramble to come up with a third scene.
She chose something she wrote: “Smoke and Mirrors,” which she called “a total joke. I wrote a bad theater piece and played it seriously.” She spent a day reworking it into what she called a “satire, film noir, soap opera, anti-smoking PSA.” It ran three minutes, she said.
Her coach, David Stears, said Farnell showed her “Smoke and Mirrors” in its original form. “She wrote it to be played seriously,” he said. “She showed it to me, and I said, ‘This is awful. This is just an awful piece of theater if you play it seriously, but if you turn it into a telenovela-type piece and present it over the top, it (would be) hysterical,’ and I can say without a doubt, it was the crowd favorite.”
Astudent from Brigham Young University won the regional. COC student Fox Smith also reached the finals, performing a one-minute monologue from “Deer” by Aaron Mark, a two-minute scene from Spike Heels by Theresa Rebeck and a three-minute scene from Octopus by Steve Yockey.
According to the Kennedy Center’s website, the 50-year-old festival involves 20,000 students in eight regions. Previous Irene Ryan winners include Sheryl Lee Ralph (“It’s a Living,” “Moesha”), Dan Butler (“Frasier”) and Kevin Rahm (“Judging Amy,” “Mad Men”).
Ryan (1902-1973) was most famous for her role on “The Beverly Hillbillies.” Her foundation has awarded these scholarships since 1972.
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About Lee Barnathan
Lee Barnathan has been a writer and editor since 1990. His articles have been published in newspapers, magazines and online. His new book "If You Experience Death, Please Call and Other Fatal Mistakes We Make With Language," a humorous look at the ways people misuse English, is available on Amazon or at his website, www.leebarnathan.com. He is hired by people all over the country to help them refine the message or story they wish to share with their target audience or demographic.
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