Category Archives: Press Releases

The electronic newsletter of the Association of Community Theatres of Greater Cincinnati

There is a lot of news to talk about.

The most important news is the location of the 2024 ACT/OCTA Regional Conference. Amanda Emmons Shumate, ACT’s 1^st Vice President, has secured Princeton High School’s Matthews Auditorium. The dates are June 14-15, with the 13^th if needed. Also, if you haven’t done so yet, secure your rights now- applying now guarantees you can decide later as to what show you wish to excerpt. The pick meeting will be 7:00pm on May 6^th, at Matthews auditorium.

The banquet will be held at the Delta by Marriott Cincinnati Sharonville Hotel which is adjacent to the school. Instead of a sit-down dinner, it will be buffet style.  For those of you wishing to book a room, the hotel rate is $119 a night. There is no free breakfast, but there are plenty of places to eat nearby. Everyone who has attended the banquet facility at the Embassy Suites knows that we have really outgrown this space. Those who attend the awards/party only have been relegated to sit in chairs either placed around the room or on the dance floor. This new hotel has a room large enough to allow you to be seated at designated tables.

You can reserve a room at the hotel now. Delta Hotels Cincinnati Sharonville for 119 USD per night

Book your group rate for ACT Cincinnati 

Forrest Goodwin will DJ again this year.

We are very excited about this change and hope this will become a permanent location. Fees to attend may increase slightly.

We are seeking dual corporate sponsorships for banquet and excerpts to offset costs.

Check the ACT website for future information and when registration will be open in April.

The ACT treasurer has secured a new method of payment for registration. ACT will be using Zeffy a fee free platform. We are asking that even if you send in your payment by check that you still go to the site and enter your information.

In keeping with one of our core values to “Educate”, ACT Cincinnati is proud to announce the winners of the 2024 performance scholarships:

The ACT Cincinnati Scholarship was awarded to Claire M. Northcut, attending Wright State University

The Robert & Helen Booth Memorial Scholarship was awarded to Hannah Richardson, attending Xavier University

The Dorothy & Frank Weber Memorial Scholarship was awarded to James Newton, attending Wright State University

The Susann Q. Royalty Performing Arts Scholarship was awarded to Erin Morton, attending University of Cincinnati-CCM

The Freshman Performing Arts Scholarship was awarded to Afton Skeeters, attending Northern Kentucky University

Congratulations to these students and thank you to all the students who applied this year. Special thanks to accompanist Paul Chiappone, Scholarship Chairperson Arlene Balczo, and our panel of judges: Piper N. Davis, Matt Dentino, Jay Goodlett, Sara Mackie, Derek J. Snow, and Tony Suriano.

The Charles Avery Memorial – Keystone and Melissa M. Smith Technical scholarships are intended for any student that is continuing their technical theater education in the area(s) of: Set Design, Scenic Design, Construction, or Décor elements, Lighting Design, Sound Design, Costume Design, Makeup/Hair Design elements, Properties, Stage Management, or any combination of the above. The scholarship is open to college Freshman, Sophomore, and Junior students currently enrolled in an accredited bachelor’s degree program. Students must attend a college within 50 miles of the greater Cincinnati area and/or have a connection to one of our ACT Cincinnati member groups.

There is both a $700 and a $1,000 scholarship available. The deadline is 11:59pm ET on March 31st. For further information on the scholarships and the criteria, go to our scholarships page.

Betsy Obermeyer, John Wesseling, and Aubrey Wilson will select the winners.

(Information provided by Arlene Balczo)

The winter Judges forum was held on Saturday, February 24^th at the Village Players, in Ft. Thomas. Betsy Obermeyer put together a very interesting set of forums to help with what to look for when writing a critique. IF you missed the presentation, you can find it here on the ACT website or the links below:

• An introduction to intimacy coordinators with Torie Wiggins: ACT Cincinnati Forum 2024 Part 1: An introduction to intimacy coordinators with Torie Wiggins
• Music direction 101 or “Conductors: not just for trains” with Linda Abbott: ACT Cincinnati Forum 2024 Part 2 Music direction 101 with Linda Abbott
• Blocking for thrust/in the round, also known as “Corners are your friend” with Jerry Wiesenhahn: ACT Cincinnati Forum 2024 Part 3 Blocking for thrust/in the round with Jerry Wiesenhahn

In keeping with two of our core values to “Connect” and “Educate”, ACT Cincinnati is proud to debut our Mentor Match program. The purpose of this program is to facilitate connections among our community members who are wanting to expand their theater knowledge with others who want to impart their theater knowledge.

We all have things we want to learn. We all have things we can teach. If you are interested in being a part of this program, go to the Mentor Match page.

Your name and contact information WILL NOT BE PUBLISHED anywhere – these will be personal introductions facilitated by the ACT Education Committee members. When there seems to be enough interest, ACT Cincinnati will schedule classes or workshops.

If you’d like to help with this work, or if you have any questions, please contact education@actcincinnati.org.

Here is a list of upcoming deadlines from Amanda Emmons Shumate, ACT 1^st VP.

​ 2024 ACT/OCTAFest Reference Sheet (3 pages)

Welcome to the 2024 OCTAFest Regional Convention. This checklist should serve as guidelines for submitting all your necessary information. Questions: Amanda Emmons Shumate, 1st VP, convention@actcincinnati.org.

OCTA NEWS

Let’s talk about the ACT/OCTA Regional Competition.

The Regional is composed of excerpts hosted by OCTA and the banquet/awards/party hosted by ACT. In other areas of Ohio, there is one theatre who acts as host of the regional. That theatre makes all the arrangements, books a theatre and does whatever is necessary to host the competition.

There is no other area in the state that has the great organization that we have in our southwest region. Since all of us are considered the “host” we ALL pitch in to make our regional work. So, that is why at the annual banquet, we have not only ACT awards, but the OCTA awards from the excerpts. Each group has a job to do which are decided by each group’s ACT representative who attends the monthly ACT meetings.

If your group is planning to excerpt, the link to all the information you will need is available on the OCTA website. On the documents and forms page, you will find the Regional Festival Theatre Entry Packet. (This is also where you will find the information for the 2025 AACT festival if your group is also to be considered.) The regional entry packet information can also be found on the ACT website.

At this time, there may be as many as 14 groups excerpting. If that holds, the Thursday night of excerpts will be needed. If less than that number, we are looking at only Friday and Saturday. Again, we will keep you updated by as many ways as possible. The number of our groups who are selected to go to the state competition hinges on how many groups excerpt. The OCTA rules are for every 4 groups excerpting, 1 gets picked. Therefore, if we have 14 excerpts, we have 4 groups and an alternate selected to attend the state competition held over Labor Day Weekend. The alternate will be selected if one of our groups cannot go to the state or if needed to meet the OCTA quota. This is done on a rotating basis between the 8 regions.

This is also a year to decide if you want your excerpt to be considered to compete in the AACT festival in 2025. You have to declare at the time you are selected to compete at the state level if you would like to be considered for AACT.

NOW you may ask, what about the state competition. There is a new change here and hopefully it will continue into the future. Excerpts in a real theatre setting.

The 2024 OCTA Conference “Thinking Outside The Box” will be held on August 30 – September 2, 2024 with excerpts taking place at the Midland Theatre in Newark, Ohio. Yes, all the excerpts will take place in a THEATRE! OCTA has again made arrangements for the Cherry Valley Hotel for lodging, the annual banquet, and other after-hours activities. This hotel is under new ownership, and everyone is encouraged to book their stay at this hotel. Even though there were problems with this hotel in the past, OCTA had committed to holding 2024 there. Just like locally, according to the contract there is a minimum of rooms nights that OCTA has to provide in order to NOT incur a penalty. So please, if you are selected to attend the state conference or just plan to attend, plan to stay here. You can book your room now by contacting the hotel directly and asking for OCTA. Let them know if you want 1st floor or 2nd floor near elevator.

As the year progresses, more information will become available.

For all you techies, OCTA has quite a few competitions to enter: costume, set design, props, and newsletter. All of these can be found on the OCTA website. You can find the forms needed under the various categories along with the date the items are due. PLEASE, enter these competitions and get recognized for all your work.

OCTA NEEDS YOU!

SO, you want to have input on how OCTA runs? This is for you.

OCTA is looking for people who are interested in becoming a part of the board. The board consists of not only the regional representatives from the 8 regions of the state, but also an 18-member board elected by its member theatre groups at the annual convention held over Labor Day weekend each year. This is where you come in.

At this time, there are 6 three-year terms that need to be filled on this board. The board, with guidance from the regions, creates and implements policies that govern the organization. If you are interested in being a board member, you are asked to submit an application, which is available on the OCTA website. All other information you need to make an informed decision is attached to the application document.

OCTA recognized The Drama Workshop on their 70^th anniversary opening night of Becky’s New Car. Peggy Kenney was on hand to present the group with a certificate to celebrate the occasion. Congratulations and keep up the good work.

Any errors, mistakes or omissions are not intentional.

Thanks to all of you for being a part of Greater Cincinnati theatre.