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Campus Review
December 12, 2013
Jacob Augsten Wins First Prize in
Atlanta Mu Phi Epsilon Competition
Pathways: A Journey Through Life for the Audience
by Sarah Boyd
Arts Page
Jacob Augsten of Griffin, a junior in
Clayton State University’s Bachelor of
Music program, won the first prize of
$600 in the annual music scholarship
competition sponsored by the Atlanta
Alumni Chapter of Mu Phi Epsilon on
Saturday, Nov. 9.
Mu Phi Epsilon is an international profes-
sional fraternity for men and women in
the field of music, and the Atlanta Alumni
Chapter’s annual competition is open to
all students who are members of Mu Phi
Epsilon, which has chapters at nine
Georgia universities, including Clayton
State’s Delta Psi Chapter.
Augsten, a baritone in the studio of
Clayton State Director of Vocal Studies
and Opera Kurt-Alexander Zeller, came
out on top of a field of singers and pianists
with performances of songs by Schubert,
Vaughan Williams, and Ravel and had the
honor of performing for the International
President of Mu Phi Epsilon, Rosemary
Ames, who was visiting the Atlanta
Alumni Chapter.
Augsten has previously appeared in two
of Clayton State’s music drama produc-
tions, playing Linus in You’re a Good
Man, Charlie Brown in 2012 and starring
as Sir Ruthven Murgatroyd in Gilbert and
Sullivan’s Ruddigore last semester. This
season he also is performing with the
Atlanta Opera Chorus.
“I must say I was rather pleased when one
of the judges told me later that she just
knew Jacob had to be my student because
he was such a communicative story-
teller,” says Zeller. “There are some very
famous singing teachers around who have
a reputation for turning out students who
sound just exactly like they do, (but) I’d
much rather be known for teaching stu-
dents to sound like themselves and shar-
ing a commitment to helping the music to
speak effectively.”
On Nov. 7, 2013, Clayton State’s Theatre
program hosted the premiere for a 10-
minute play festival known as Pathways,
directed by Shontelle Thrash, director of
Theatre and assistant professor of Theatre
and Communication. Pathways played in
the Clayton State Theatre for five non-
consecutive days during the weeks of
Nov. 4 and Nov. 11.
Pathways featured 10 different mini plays
written by the students and alumni of the
Theatre Program at Clayton State
University. The plays were created as a
project in each student’s playwriting class
and brought to the big stage. Director
Thrash chose each play that elicited the
theme of “isolation.”
“Directing a festival of short plays written
by our very own students and alumni of
Clayton State provided such an opportuni-
ty,” she says.
Every play submitted by each student or
alumni to be shown in Pathways, was not.
The 10 plays were chosen by the director
because they showed major potential and
are the best of the ones submitted.
“It’s really awesome to see something that
you created be chosen and shown to your
friends, family and peers around campus”,
says Adam Dunn, Clayton State Theatre
student and cast member of Pathways.
Pathways is the first play at Clayton State
to exhibit multiple mini-plays all wrapped
up into one main play. For 90 minutes the
cast poured their hearts and souls out on
the stage. The audience was provided with
great entertainment as well as different
emotions as each play brought on happi-
ness, laughter, sorrow, surprise and antic-
ipation. The audience contained not only
faculty and students from the University,
but members of the surrounding commu-
nity partook in the opportunity to enjoy
the entertainment as well.
“I am always intrigued by projects that
take audience on a journey”, says Thrash.
The plays content ranged from a crazy guy
that heard voices in his head, a sick girl
dying in her mom’s arms, a girl in love with
both her good and bad conscious feuding
with each other to cartoons such as Clifford
and Little Bo Peep cooking the Pillsbury
Dough Boy. Each play was captivating and
provided no chance for the audience to lose
interest as no two plays were the same.
Thrash mentions that, “in life we take vari-
ous paths. For every choice made, there are
consequences to those choices. Some are
good and some are not so good. From
Dissociative Personality Disorder to a meet-
ing of a famous icon, these plays explore a
wide range of stories.
“It has been my pleasure to bring these sto-
ries to life.”