Blinn College Theatre Arts Program earns awards at state play festival

Production of 'Romeo and Juliet' receives Excellent Award and 13 individual recognitions

March 3, 2026

The Blinn College District Theatre Arts Program received one of the highest honors awarded at the Texas Community College Speech and Theatre Association Play Festival, earning an Excellent Award and 13 individual honors for its production of “Romeo and Juliet.”

“Romeo and Juliet” was Blinn’s entry into the festival, hosted last weekend in Carthage, Texas. The play drew more than 350 high school students at preview performances and more than 300 patrons at public performances Feb. 19-22 at the Dr. W.W. O’Donnell Performing Arts Center on the Brenham Campus.

Blinn’s Excellent Award was one of only two top awards given to a production at the festival.

“The annual Play Festival celebrates the art of theatre in an atmosphere of friendliness and respect,” said Brad Nies, Theatre Arts Director on the Brenham Campus. “It provides an opportunity for two-year colleges to share their work in a festival setting, receiving awards and important feedback from educated theatre critics.”

Respondents for the Blinn production were Dr. Zach Dailey, Associate Professor of Theatre at the University of Houston-Downtown, and Nicholas Graves, Department Chair and Associate Professor of Sam Houston State University’s Department of Theatre and Musical Theatre.

Excellent Awards in Technical Presentation (Professors’ Choice) were earned by Ayla Witt for stage management, Lanna Solomon for sound design, and Paige Stewart for makeup design. Solomon also received an Excellent Award for Technical Work (Respondents’ Choice) for sound design.

Superior Awards for Technical Presentations (Professors’ Choice) were earned by Tevin Simmons for wig design and Aidan Johnson for scenic design. Johnson also received a Superior Award for Technical Work (Respondents’ Choice) for scenic design.

Excellent Awards in Acting (Respondents’ Choice) were earned by Annabelle Chisum (Juliet), Ethan Mugambi (Escalus), and Joyous Feagins (Lady Capulet). A Superior Award in Acting (Respondents’ Choice) was earned by Jacqueline Netanel (Nurse). Netanel also received the Audience Choice for Acting and the Professors’ Choice for Acting.

Both Dailey and Graves also complemented the show’s scenic design and artistry, Jennifer Patrick’s costume design, and Kevin Patrick’s use of projections. They also praised the actors’ choices and stage movement.

Jennifer Patrick is a Theatre Arts Instructor and Kevin Patrick is Technical Theatre Arts Director.

The program’s final production for the 2025-26 season will be “The Boys Next Door,” at 7 p.m. April 16 and 17 and 2 p.m. April 18 and 19 (preview performances are April 16 at 10 a.m. and 1 p.m.). All performances will be at the O’Donnell Center.

Tickets are $10 for adults and $5 for Blinn students and children, available online at www.blinn.edu/boxoffice, by calling 979-830-4024, or emailing boxoffice@blinn.edu.

The program’s 10-Minute Play Festival will be held March 27 at 7 p.m. and March 28 at 2 p.m. Area high school students will submit original 10-minute plays designed to inspire, enlighten, and entertain audiences.

Blinn’s Theatre Arts Program cultivates a quality educational foundation of study, application, and experience through a wide range of performance, technical, and production studies. Its Associate of Arts degree plan integrates artistic, technical, and academic disciplines of theatre from the classroom to the stage. Students can audition for a variety of performances related to drama and theatre, and are prepared to transfer to four-year colleges and universities. For more information, visit www.blinn.edu/theatre.