2023 Michigan AACT Fest

What is AACTFest?

AACTFest is the festival process that concludes in a national theatre festival. Sponsored by the American Association of Community Theatre, the festival is held in odd-numbered years.  AACTFest presents a forum for community theatres from AACT’s 10 regions to enter productions for adjudication and advancement from the state level to the regional level and finally, to the national level.

Each competing team will have a 10×10 foot box on the stage. In each box is everything that can be used for a show – set, props and costumes. A signal is given, and the first show is off and running. Actors and production crew hustle to set up their show in exactly 10 minutes – because that’s when their show must begin. Each team’s show must be no longer than 60 minutes. They then have exactly 10 minutes to put it all back in their box and leave the stage.

AACTFEST ATTENDANCE THIS YEAR

With so many changes in the past two years in our theatres, CTAM is adapting to ever changing demands of our member groups. As a result, our Michigan AACTFest will look different in 2023 than it has in previous years. 

With only two groups able to rally the forces to compete, the decision was made to send the adjudicators to the individual theatres. This decision was made in an effort to minimize the adjudicators costs and, of course, the costs for our usual hosts: The Lebowsky Center for the Arts in Owosso. Having said that, we are excited to announce the two groups participating! The Sauk in Jonesville and Holland Civic Theatre have both submitted an application to enter. 

Our adjudicators will travel to both theatres and adjudicate them on their own stage. One of these two will represent Michigan at the Region III festival on April 27-30 in Beaver Dam, Wisconsin. The National AACTFest23 will be held in Louisville, Kentucky, June 12-18. For more information on this theatre conference go to: https://aact.org/aactfest-2023 

Many thanks go to affiliate CTAM member — The Lebowsky Center — for their willingness and dedication in offering to host this bi-annual event again. They have hosted before and they have the perfect set-up for the competition. They have a hotel within one block of the performance space, as well as a corps of experienced volunteers, anxious to welcome us to their building for the next cycle in 2025.