WCHS hosting drama society festival Saturday, open and free to public

Jarrod Mills, The Times-Tribune, Corbin, Ky.
·3 min read

Apr. 23—WHITLEY COUNTY — Whitley County High School and its drama department, also known as the Colonel Players, will play host to this year's Eastern Kentucky Dramatic Arts Society (EKDAS) event this Saturday, April 24.

Started in 2008 by Phillip Neace, the director of the Perry Central Commodore Players, EKDAS is a festival that invites all eastern Kentucky theatre programs to come together to compete in a format that allows 45-minutes for setup, performance, and strike of a production.

Whitley County Director David Sweet says Whitley County has technically hosted EKDAS in the past, but that the event was held at the University of the Cumberlands. This year's event will be the first physically hosted on Whitley County's campus, with it scheduled to take place at the high school's amphitheater.

"Because of COVID restrictions, we decided that having it in an outdoor venue, our amphitheater, was a great idea," said Sweet. "Whitley is also one of the few schools that has a drama program and no auditorium, so it presents unique challenges; we love having our amphitheater, but weather, unfortunately, is always a factor like it will be this weekend."

If it happens to rain Saturday, the event will be moved to the Charles M. Lawson Gymnasium. This year's event will feature five schools: Clay County, Leslie County, McCreary County, Perry Central and Whitley County.

The event is free to the public and everyone is encouraged to attend. Opening ceremonies are scheduled to kick-off at 9:30 a.m. and will be followed by Clay County performing "Good Morning, Miriam," by Jacquelyn Floyd-Priskorn.

Perry Central will follow that up by performing "The Audition" by Don Zolidis. McCreary County is slated to perform after that performing "10 Reasons Why You Should Stay Home Sick Today," by E.M. Bell at noon, after which lunch will be scheduled from 1 p.m.-2 p.m.

Whitley County will then perform "In the Garden of the Selfish Giant," by Sandy Asher at 2 p.m., followed by Leslie County performing "10 Ways to Survive the End of the World" by Don Zolidis. Whitley County will then perform again at 4 p.m. with their production of "Alibis" by Peter Kennedy. An award ceremony is schedule to follow that at 5 p.m.

Sweet said in order to prepare for the event, he and his department have had to plan on hosting the event both indoors and outdoors.

"We have been watching the weather for the last three weeks and trying to make alternate plans just in case. It looks as if we will have to perform in our gymnasium, which presents unique challenges," commented Sweet.

Sweet and the Colonel Players have also had to coordinate with the other schools to ensure the hosts understand the basics of each play's set up in order to prepare for the event. The hosts also have to coordinate meals for lunch, as well as ready changing areas for each play's cast.

The event will also feature awards for students, including the Mountain Top 10 Cast, two Outstanding Actor awards, two Outstanding Supporting Actor awards, a Newcomer Award (to a first-time performer at EKDAS), and Overall Performance awards to the top three schools.

The event's adjudicators will feature Grae Greer, the director and founder of the Bluegrass Children's Theatre and instructor at Owensboro Community and Technical College; Deborah Martin, professor of theatre at Berea College; and Christie Connolly, an assistant professor of theatre at Union College.

"We are excited to have their expertise," said Sweet. "We are also excited just to have the students together and watching each other perform. First and foremost, it is about the camaraderie that exists among the students and the directors of our region."