Topic: College of Fine Arts
April 22, 2008
A Ball State University student received a prestigious national scholarship based on her performance at this month's 40th annual Kennedy Center American College Theater Festival (KCACTF) Irene Ryan Acting Competition.
Erin Neufer was awarded the Margolis Scholarship, which entitles her to an all-expenses paid trip to New York this summer to participate in the Margolis Acting Workshop.
"This month-long workshop will allow Erin to work with talented professionals from across the country and will be a major stepping stone in her development as an aspiring actress," said Bill Jenkins, chair of Ball State's Department of Theatre and Dance.
Neufer and Matt Smith, both sophomore theater majors, were finalists in the April 20 acting competition.
"Both Erin and Matt were absolutely terrific during the performance and made the department, college and university proud," Jenkins said.
The KCACTF is a national theater program involving 18,000 students and 600 colleges and universities nationwide. Irene Ryan, best remembered as Granny Clampett from "The Beverley Hillbillies," is the namesake of the honor awarded to outstanding student performers at each of the KCACTF's five regional festivals. Regional winners earned trips to the national festival to participate in the finals.
Ball State was the first school in the 40-year history of KCACTF to send an Irene Ryan acting candidate to this month's national festival in Washington, D.C., for three consecutive years.
By Gail Werner, Media Strategist