Members of the Directing Two class are preparing for their One Act Play Festival, where their leadership as a director will be praised or criticized.

The One Act Play Festival will take place during Finals Week at the Maintenance Shop.

Each of the 10 ISU students of the Directing Two class chose a one act and their actors from the auditions that took place March 4.

A total of 60 people auditioned, but only 30 roles were available.

During auditions, the students looked for energy, good volume, honesty and confidence from the actors.

“Every spring semester, each person from the Directing Two class chooses their own one act they want to direct,” said Noel Vandenbosch, senior in theater performing arts. “They get guidance from Brad [Dell], but for the most part, it’s on their own.”

In the Fall, Vandenbosch was a director for the 10-minute play, which was part of the Directing One class. In the Fall, the Directing One class performs 10-minute plays, and in the Spring, the Directing Two class performs one acts.

“The great thing about the directing class is it’s a great learning experience. You get a taste of what it’s like and I realized I enjoyed it. But it was really overwhelming to see the entire picture because as a director, you see everything. It’s easier to focus on one thing and do it really well,” Vandenbosch said.

A few examples of the playwrights of the plays that Brad Dell, assistant professor of music and theatre, approved of include Harold Pinter, Sam Shepard, Anton Chekhov and Neil Simon.

“This year there’s a lot of comedies. There’s two Chekhov comedies, they’re taking a part [of] William Shakespeare’s Abridged and putting it into a one act, and a second act back-to-back and one girl is adapting a play from a book,” Vandenbosch said.

Dell started the festival when he began teaching at Iowa State. This will mark the festival’s 10th year.

“[The students] get to direct the whole play, produce it and have it be performed in front of a live audience,” Dell said.

Because the festival is during Finals Week — May 4, 5 and 6 — it will be a source of entertainment and a study break for students. It is a free event at the Maintenance Shop.