��ֱ����

Theater lives by the adage “The show must go on.” But when “on” means on the road, that’s another matter, and when it is 336 miles away at the Kennedy Center American College Theater Festival, that’s another matter yet.

But that was the case for 28 South ��ֱ���� State University theater students when they presented at the annual event in Des Moines, Iowa, Jan. 21. 

This is the first year in the event’s 57-year history that SDSU was selected to stage one of its productions in the contest, and in 2025 only four plays were selected for competition from the seven-state region of Iowa, Kansas, Nebraska, Minnesota, Missouri, North ��ֱ���� and South ��ֱ����.

“This was equivalent to a football team making it to the playoffs. It’s a great honor and brings recognition to campus,” said Jim Wood, who directs “Fuddy Meers” and is artistic director of SDSU Theatre and Dance.

The theater department had entered the production in the Kennedy Center festival before the school year began. SDSU presented the show in October and learned in mid-December that it had been selected for the Kennedy conference.

‘Like riding a bike’

Presenting “Fuddy Meers” on a different stage three months after its last performance stretched both the faculty and the students.

“It’s a lot of work for everybody in a lot of different ways. For instance, the actors memorized their lines months ago, and many have been in a different production since then. But everybody has been really great in adjusting to that,” said Reagan Black, a Fort Dodge, Iowa, senior who serves as stage manager.

The crew came back to the weekend before spring semester classes resumed on Jan. 13 to get in a couple rehearsals.

“It was amazing to watch the show come back to them on Sunday afternoon. It was like riding a bike. If they forgot the line, they would do the movement and the lines would come back to them. It’s a quick process (to get ready for the conference), but it’s going well,” Black said before the set was loaded onto a 26-foot rental truck for the trip to Des Moines.

The crew had another rehearsal Jan. 13 and then gave a Jan. 14 encore performance in Brookings before dismantling the set.

Festival — more than a play competition

Five Suburban loads of students and three faculty members left for Des Moines Jan. 19, and faculty members Corey Shelsta and Kim Johnson left Jan. 20 in the rental truck. Jan. 21 was an exciting and exhausting day for the crew.

They started unloading at 8 a.m. with a goal of finishing up by 2 p.m. to allow time for a quick rehearsal before having to clear the stage at 5 p.m. Curtain was 7 p.m. After the 90-minute performance, the students had until 11:55 p.m. to box everything up and load the truck again. Next stop was Brookings, but not until Jan. 26.

While “Fuddy Meers” was only performed once, students were be able to attend workshops, audition for summer shows and watch the other three plays selected for the competition.

The festival drew 1,000 students and 200 faculty from colleges in the seven-state region.

Black said, “Doing this in front of other people who are experienced in theater was exciting and daunting because they understand more than most audiences. Theatre people might see things other audiences would not. 

“For example, if lighting and sound effects are done right, most people in the audience never notice them. But theater people know what is simple to do and what is challenging to do. So that was exciting but also a little intimidating.”

Set designed with contest in mind

The festival was conducted in the Hoyt Sherman Place, a historic 1,400-seat theater that is attached to a home. The stage is 15% to 20% narrower than the Oscar Larson Theatre on the campus.

Wood and Shelsta were aware of that before set production began at the start of the school year. Therefore, the set was constructed so it could break down to fit in a truck a maximum height and width of 8 feet. The set itself did have to be positioned differently on the Hoyt Sherman stage, which caused actors to adjust their stage movements, Wood said.

However, tape lines were used on the Larson stage during January rehearsals so the actors’ adjustments were less noticeable in Des Moines, Wood said.

While all seven actors were the same as the fall, Wood had to assemble six new stagehands and fit them in carnival costumes for the scenic changes.

Contest comes with a cost

Taking “Fuddy Meers” on the road — and staying there — does come with a price tag, a big one. 

Wood estimated the expedition cost $25,000. Lodging alone — 17 rooms at $1,200 per room for the six nights — topped $20,000. There also were food and transportation costs as well as paying royalties for another performance of “Fuddy Meers.”

But students were appreciative.

“It was a really cool experience,” said Abigayle Davis, a senior theater major from Brookings. “I’m really grateful for the faculty that put in the work to make it happen and to have a program strong enough to produce a play that is worthy of the festival. Our faculty did a lot of work over the (Christmas) break to prepare for the load in.”

She noted Shelsta, a theater professor, and Johnson, the scene set manager, spent many hours analyzing how the set would have to be assembled on the smaller stage. They even built a replica of the Des Moines loading dock to make sure everything would fit.

Once the SDSU caravan arrived in Des Moines, the faculty largely took a back seat. Shelsta said, “I’m like a coach and give them instructions, but this is student sound, student lighting, student actors, student production manager.” He added to couldn’t be prouder of how the students did with their first road show. 

Wood added that some of them may reap a benefit down the road.

“A lot of students, when they are starting their careers, get jobs at theme parks, on national tours or on cruise ships, where the productions are constantly being torn down and set up again. This gave them a little taste of what that life is like.”