BJU received top billing in four categories in voting for the 2019 BroadwayWorld South Carolina Awards.
Eighteen categories covering regional works, touring shows and more were included in online voting, recognizing productions across the state that opened between Oct. 1, 2018, and Sept. 30, 2019.
The University’s 2,600-seat Rodeheaver Auditorium was voted Theater of the Year, while two of its signature productions during the 2018–19 academic year received top honors.
King Lear was voted Best Play (non-professional) and Titanic was voted Best Musical (non-professional). Guest artist Caitlin Mesiano was voted Best Actress in a Musical or Play (non-professional) for her performances as third-class passenger Kate McGowan in Titanic, while BJU Theatre major Michael Cunningham was also recognized in the competition.
In October, Cunningham played the lead, Pip, in the Bob Jones University Classic Players adaptation of Great Expectations.
See Also: Students Star in Classic Players Production
“For BJU’s first year in the BroadwayWorld regional competition, I couldn’t be more pleased with the final results,” said Dr. Darren Lawson, dean of the School of Fine Arts and Communication and producer-director for Titanic and producer for King Lear.
“This recognition speaks highly of the dedicated students, faculty, staff and alumni who worked so hard on these productions. I want to thank the hundreds of people associated with BJU who made these wins possible. We are blessed with some amazing talent at BJU, and the BroadwayWorld awards are the result of their creative work.”
Titanic, a two-act musical that received five Tony Awards in 1997, was performed March 14–16 at Rodeheaver Auditorium. The 65-member cast, which included guest artists, BJU faculty, staff and students, was accompanied by a 26-person orchestra under the direction of Dr. Michael Moore, chair of the Division of Music.
The Bob Jones University Classic Players presented William Shakespeare’s King Lear, directed by David Schwingle, on Nov. 15–17, 2018, at Rodeheaver Auditorium. The play, with BJU Theatre department head Ron Pyle in the title role, was the ninth time BJU presented King Lear since 1934. The 27-member cast also included BJU staff, students and other faculty.
Check the Fine Arts calendar for stage productions, concerts and recitals at Rodeheaver Auditorium, Performance Hall, Stratton Hall and War Memorial Chapel this semester.
