Some of the most influential theater professionals in the nation will converge with students from across the Midwest this week, as Iowa State hosts the Kennedy Center/American College Theater Festival (KC/ACTF).

The festival runs from Jan. 19 to 24, and will feature a wide variety of workshops, acting scholarship auditions, national design awards and several of the finest productions mounted by colleges and universities in the region.

Gregg Henry, director of ISU theater, is the regional chair for region five of the KC/ACTF.

“KC/ACTF provides opportunities for college and university theater departments to showcase their best work and to receive outside response,” Henry said in a press release.

Josh Bryner, senior in performing arts and math, said the exposure to other theater artists is one of the most important things about the festival.

“It’s great to meet other people from the Midwest and see what work they’re doing,” Bryner said. “(KC/ACTF) provides an opportunity for us here in Iowa to be exposed to some things we otherwise wouldn’t.”

Chris Mannes, senior in performing arts, also enjoys the opportunity to perform alongside other artists.

“Overall, it’s nice because you can see what you do as compared to what others are doing,” he said.

The decision last spring to host this year’s festival meant that a lot of work would be needed from ISU theater students to ensure the success of the event.

Bryner and Kim Hale, senior in journalism and mass communication and performing arts, were put in charge of coordinating student volunteers. As part of their preparation, they organized a variety of social events for visiting students throughout the week.

The first two days of the festival are devoted primarily to the Irene Ryan acting scholarship competition.

Every participating entry has a KC/ACTF respondent select up to two actors as nominees for the scholarship. At the regional festival each nominee, along with a scene partner, performs a five-minute audition, and two winners are selected to compete in the national competition at the Kennedy Center in Washington D.C.

Bryner was a nominee last year, and this year is a scene partner. He said being involved in the competition was a unique experience.

“It was exciting and scary,” Bryner said. “It was a great opportunity to force myself to see what I was capable of and what I have to do to be a better performer. I learned a lot about myself as an actor and what it takes to audition and get parts.”

Watching the other nominees was also a rewarding experience for Bryner.

“I really enjoyed the opportunity to see such a wide variety of pieces and see so many interpretations of those pieces,” Bryner said. “(Nominees) can concentrate on such a small amount of work; some can be as good as watching a full production.”

Along with the Irene Ryan scholarships is the National Design Expo,where student designers can showcase their finest work in scenic, lighting and costume design.

Last year, Mannes entered the design expo, but said that time constraints would have made the event too difficult this year.

Last year’s competition was judged by Tony Award-winning designer Ming Cho Lee.

“Being in the design expo was both intimidating and exciting,” Mannes said. “It’s interesting because (Lee) went around and talked about all the exhibits. It’s exhilarating because if he likes what you did, you can say Ming Cho Lee liked your work.”

This year’s festival features an impressive line-up of special guests including Lee; Ron LaRosa, associate director of the North American companies of “Les Miserables;” Daniel Sullivan, director of the National Critic’s Institute and theater critic for The Los Angeles Times; and Michael David, producer of “Titanic” and “Footloose.”

“It will be interesting to see Michael David,” Bryner said, “just to hear what it’s like to work on such a successful show.”

Five mainstage productions and two workshop productions will be performed at the festival. Productions are open only to festival participants, with the exception of three evening shows at Stephens Auditorium.

Two different productions of Steve Martin’s “Picasso at the Lapin Agile” will be presented on Thursday and Saturday night. One of the productions will be produced by Emporia State University, the other by the University of Nebraska-Lincoln.

Friday evening, an original drama based on interviews with holocaust survivors, “Dear Finder,” will be presented by the University of Minnesota-Duluth.

Tickets for the evening shows are $7 for students and $10 for general admission and can be purchased on a cash-only basis in the Stephens lobby before the shows.