EUGENE–Four University of Oregon theater students won awards for acting and writing at the recent Northwest Drama Conference hosted by Boise State University in Idaho’s capital.

They were among 22 UO theater students and two UO theater faculty members who attended the mid-February event that included Kennedy Center/American College Theatre Festival (KC/ACTF) Region VII activities and competitions.

University Theatre had eight entrants in the preliminaries of the Irene Ryan Acting Competition and two of them made it through the quarterfinal round of more than 120 contestants and into the semi-final round of 32.

Rowan Morrison, a junior theater arts major, Eugene, and his partner Quinn Mattfeld, a sophomore theater arts major, Camas, Wash., made it into the final round of 16, with Morrison earning the Best Classical Actor award and a $100 prize. Morrison performed a scene from "Othello" and Mattfeld did a monologue from "Loud in my Head."

Also advancing to the final 16 in the Irene Ryan Acting Competition were Scott Vogel, a senior theater arts and pre-psychology major, Grants Pass, and his partner Michael Govier, a senior theater arts major, Redding, Calif., who did scenes from "Othello" and "Endgame." Govier was honored as Best Irene Ryan Partner and received $100.

UO actors were nominated for the Irene Ryan competition by regional respondents from other Northwest colleges who observed them in University Theatre productions at Robinson Theatre.

Ryan, popularly remembered for her role as Granny on the original TV series, "The Beverly Hillbillies," set up an endowment to fund scholarships for the best actors in each region as well as for the winners of the national Irene Ryan competition at the Kennedy Center in April. This award is considered the most prestigious amateur acting award in the United States.

Two other UO students earned prizes for writing, each including a $100 honorarium, at the Northwest Drama Conference.

Ross Maxwell, a senior English major, Portland, was honored for the Outstanding Original Student Play Script for his play, "I Can’t Quite Say Bourgeoisie," first produced by the University of Oregon’s Pocket Playhouse student production organization.

The award for Best Academic Paper by a Graduate Student was awarded to Susann Suprenant, a doctoral degree student in theater arts from Springfield.

The Northwest Drama Conference offers an opportunity for attendees from institutions of higher education to take part in workshops, discussion groups, and informational and educational sessions designed to promote a sharing of ideas. The 2001 conference will be hosted by the University of Alaska in Anchorage.

One of the highlights of the Feb. 15—19 conference was an inspirational address by keynote speaker Mary McDonnell, a two-time Oscar-nominated actress for her role as Stands with a Fist in "Dances with Wolves" and for her portrayal of soap opera star May-Alice in John Sayles’ "Passion Fish." She also conducted a powerful and popular acting workshop for the students.

Other Northwest Drama Conference workshops included sessions on directing, Michael Chekov acting technique, various aspects of design, and computers and web sites, as well as juried exhibits in costume, lighting, make-up and scenic design. Four plays from participating universities also were presented, one each evening of the conference.

American College Theatre Festival (ACTF) is a national organization administered through the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C., which seeks to advance excellence in college and university theater programs by sharing ideas and resources among institutions, fostering competition among actors, designers, writers and productions, and providing response to production work by peers.

Region VII of the ACTF, covering the same geographic territory as the Northwest Drama Conference, includes colleges and universities in Alaska, Washington, Oregon, Idaho, Montana and Wyoming.

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