Students earn national recognition for "The Covid Monologues"

Published on Feb 2, 2021

LEXINGTON, KY - The Bluegrass Community and Technical College (BCTC) production of "The Covid Monologues" is one of only 10 productions by colleges and universities to be invited to the Region IV Kennedy Center American College Theatre Festival (KCACTF). 

"The Covid Monologues" (Youtube), written, performed and produced by BCTC students, alumni and faculty, brings the current social reality of isolation, death, civil unrest, and all associated emotions to the stage. The audience takes in an individual experience as shared through a collective collaboration. The collaboration element extends beyond the stage as the theatre and film departments worked together on this project.

"This has been a great opportunity to showcase the Filmmaking and Theatre programs and find creative ways the programs and our students can work together on joint productions now and in the future," said Stephanie Fitch, BCTC Film Studies program coordinator.

The show was created in the early months of the pandemic and filmed while observing safety and social distance requirements. The performance captures the isolation of the pandemic while illustrating the human ability to connect.

"It would have been a real challenge to produce a piece of this nature in the best of circumstances, to say nothing of attempting to do it during a pandemic," said Timothy Davis, BCTC Theatre program coordinator and show director. "I'm very impressed with the way we were able to pivot in terms of our rehearsal process, and our staging and filming. We kept everyone safe, and still managed to produce a quality piece of work that I am incredibly proud of."

BCTC has worked hard to serve and engage students during the pandemic. "The Covid Monologues" is a great example of a creative pivot in instruction and student outreach. 

"This has been both an exciting and challenging opportunity for the talented filmmaking and theatre faculty and students to work together on a production," said Melanie Williamson, BCTC Academic dean. "Adding to this accomplishment is that they were able use technology and creativity to keep the acting and filming groups safe while sharing the production with the BCTC community locally and across the nation."  

The KCACTF, a national theatre program serving theatre students from colleges and universities across the United States, recognizes outstanding theatre programs and productions in its annual showcase festival. Regional festivals take place in January and February, producing finalists for the national festival in April. 

"We were amazed by the creativity, talent and resilience in our region. The selected productions represent the full range of our region's colleges and universities and include classics as well as cutting-edge contemporary productions," said KCACTF. 

The Region IV KCACTF will be virtual and take place Feb. 4-7. Region IV represents colleges and universities in Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Mississippi, North Carolina, Puerto Rico, South Carolina, Tennessee, U.S. Virgin Islands and Virginia. BCTC, one of only 10 institutions in the entire region invited to participate in this competition, was invited to participate in this competition. Invitation to participate is truly an outstanding honor and evidence of the extraordinary talent at BCTC.

You can find the full production and a highlight reel on the BCTC Theatre YouTube channel. If you would like to learn more about the BCTC theatre and film programs, visit the BCTC website. BCTC is enrolling now for summer and fall classes.