Students Cast in National Theatre Productions

SAN BERNARDINO>> Two San Bernardino Valley College Theater Arts students made history recently when they became the first SBVC students ever cast in productions at the Kennedy Center American College Theater Festival. The Region VIII festival, held in Mesa, Arizona, brought together students and faculty from Southern and Central California, Arizona, Hawaii, Utah and Southern Nevada. Nine SBVC students attended, and two were cast in productions — Earl Decoud Jr. in the devised performance "Doing Nothing is Doing Something" and Elisha Bascomb in the short play "Dinner for Two." “This is a great achievement, as hundreds of actors audition and few are cast,” said Melinda Fogle, theater arts professor. Fogle began submitting performances to the Kennedy Center American College Theater Festival in 2014, starting with SBVC’s production of Romeo and Juliet. “When you submit a production, a KCACTF respondent comes to watch and then gives an oral response to the cast and crew,” she said. “It is a great opportunity for our students to get an outside perspective on their work. Students rise to the occasion, and I’ve seen a definite increase in student discipline, professionalism and artistry.”