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KSC Students Shine at German Theatre Festival

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In what was announced as an extremely close decision, Keene State German students took second prize at the annual German Theatre Festival and Competition in April. Their performance of excerpts from the Mozart! Das Musical.  was narrowly edged out by Middlebury College, one of the premier colleges in language instruction. This was Keene State’s first time to enter the festival.

Mount Holyoke has hosted the event for 38 years. A panel that includes faculty from the German Studies Theater Arts at Mount Holyoke, German teachers, and German representatives of the German Consulate and the Goethe Institut judge the performances. “It is, of course, a wonderful opportunity for students to be immersed in German for the entire day,” said German Lecturer Alison Pantesco.

Surprisingly, none of the participating students were theater majors, though one was a music minor. “All are German minors, AND they are all in just their second semester of German,” Prof. Pantesco explained. “Taking on this musical was quite ambitious, but since I use so much music in my teaching it seemed to make sense. Two of the roles were singing roles, and two were not. Memorizing the song lyrics and the dialog, at a level that was pretty advanced, presented a special challenge, but all four actors rose to that challenge beautifully. I believe most colleges tend to use upper level language students. Some even have German drama courses offered on their campuses.” So the KSC students did exceptionally well, considering the level of competition.

“Frau Pantesco was very helpful in getting us ready for our dialogue and singing, and we held our own against students who have been taken German for years,” said German minor Samantha Charland. “This speaks to the excellence of the German program here at Keene State College.”

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