AUA Students Present Final Acting Performances

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YEREVAN, Armenia — On December 7, students enrolled in the Acting Techniques course at the American University of Armenia (AUA) presented their final performances on stage in the Large Auditorium of the University.

Each fall, students in the Acting Techniques course led by Adjunct Lecturer Armine Abrahamyan spend the semester building a character and interacting on stage using movement, voice, and imagination. Abrahamyan and Teaching Associate Iren Stepanyan coach students to understand the history and theory of the craft of acting, analyzing and improvising acting scenes and developing the basic skills of the acting process.

Final performances included excerpts from both comedy and dramatic theater by Shakespeare, Goldoni, Wilde, Miller, Anouilh, Ibsen, Shanley, Churchill, and Maeterlinc, including The Taming of the Shrew, Top Girls, The Twelfth Night, The Servant of Two Masters, An Ideal Husband, Antigone, The Crucible, Doubt, A Doll’s House, A Midsummer Night’s Dream, and The Blue Bird.

An engaged audience of students, faculty, parents, and guests enjoyed the students’ interaction on stage; their characterization, emotional development, and creativity transposed everyone into the world of theater, healing their hearts and increasing their empathy in the joyous environment.

Several students shared their thoughts about the course and the impact it had on their individual performances. Lilit Harutyunyan (BAEC ’27) noted, “The Acting Techniques class completely transformed my perception of myself.”

Similarly, Nare Melkumyan (BAB ’27) noted: “This course was truly a self-discovery, where I learned to bring characters to life and discovered the power of storytelling through performances. Arsen Akopyan (BAB ’27) shared, “We managed to transform ordinary scripts into something truly magical. We are not just students in the acting class. We are like a family.”

Instructor Abrahamyan sums up: “What I always witness in the Acting Techniques class is that the students enjoy growing together both as actors and as personalities.”

Founded in 1991, the American University of Armenia (AUA) is a private, independent university located in Yerevan, Armenia, affiliated with the University of California, and accredited by the WASC Senior College and University Commission in the United States. AUA provides local and international students with Western-style education through top-quality undergraduate and graduate degree and certificate programs, promotes research and innovation, encourages civic engagement and community service, and fosters democratic values.