This week Ames will be occupied by individuals who share a passion for theater. Iowa State is hosting the 39th annual Region 5 Kennedy Center American College Theater Festival from Jan. 21 to 27.

Nearly 2,000 people from seven Midwestern states are expected to attend the various events of KCACTF. Students, faculty and staff from approximately 75 schools in Iowa, Kansas, Minnesota, Mississippi, Nebraska, North Dakota and South Dakota will be visiting Ames to participate in the festival.

Workshops, acting competitions and plays will take place throughout the week. Workshops taught by professors and theater professionals will focus on audition advice, lighting tips, playwriting and directing.

Sarah Brower, ISU Theatre student and sophomore in pre-advertising, is excited for the festival.

“Our professor has been talking about it since the beginning of the semester,” Brower said. “The workshops sound interesting because so much goes into theater. It’s not just the acting; there’s technology, music and more,” she said.

The festival offers more than 100 workshops that will take place every day beginning at 8 a.m.

Students from Emporia State University, the University of Kansas, Minnesota State University, the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, Nebraska Wesleyan University, Wartburg College and Wichita State University are scheduled to present plays. Nine plays are planned for the week.

Auditions for upcoming plays will be open to all those attending the festival. Ten-minute plays and a costume parade are also part of the event. Professional actress Karen Eterovich will be performing a one-woman show, “Cheer from Chawton: A Jane Austen Family Theatrical,” Friday in the Maintenance Shop of the Memorial Union.

Brad Dell, lecturer of music, is a coordinator of the festival.

“To sum it up, the theater festival celebrates every possible type of theater on the collegiate level,” Dell said.

The majority of events will be on campus, in Stephens Auditorium, Fisher Theater, Scheman Courtyard and the Maintenance Shop. Other events will take place in the Ames City Auditorium, 515 Clarke Ave., and the Gateway Hotel and Conference Center, 2100 Green Hills Drive.

The KCACTF was started in 1969 by Roger L. Stevens to improve college theater programs in the United States. Since then, about 400,000 theater students have put on nearly 10,000 productions across the nation.

The KCACTF gives students the opportunity to improve their theatrical skills while having their work critiqued. Students are also able to receive national recognition for excellence in theater.

Colleges and universities that participate in KCACTF are divided into eight regions, depending on their geographical location. During January or February, each region hosts a festival featuring plays, workshops and awards.

This will be the second time Iowa State has hosted the festival; the first time was in January 1999.

“It’s such a wonderful opportunity for Iowa State,” Dell said. “The fact we were asked to host KCACTF again said a lot about the quality of ISU, especially the quality of the theater program here.”

People who would like to attend can register to attend the full week or can buy single-day passes at the Gateway Center.

“I really encourage theater students to come. It’s such an incredible event for theatrical experiences on every level,” Dell said.