Sweet Home, Indiana

Sweet Home, Indiana alabama native Percionna Hale finds a home in the University of Southern Indiana Theatre Department

There are 431 miles between Montgomery, Alabama, and Evansville, Indiana. No going home on the weekends for Perci Hale. But between the campus beauty and the friendliness of the people, USI seems a lot like home. "I fell in love with the kindness and warmth of everyone, from the students to our president, Dr. Rochon," says Hale.

Left: Hale says goodbye to her parents at the Multicultural Leadership Scholarship Luncheon. Right: Hale and her 2019 scholarship cohort.

Not only was USI's community of caring a selling point for Hale and her family, but the Multicultural Leadership Scholarship gave her the financial support she needed to go to college out of state. As a recipient, Hale was invited to move in early and participate in leadership curriculum.

"What sold me on USI was the new state of the art Performance Center. I remember seeing a former high school classmate, Jesmelia Williams, in one of USI's past productions and was completely in awe of how beautiful the theatre was and how innovative and unique the set looked."

Above: Her freshman year, Hale took classes with the students in her scholarship cohort. Below: Hale learns make up techniques in a theatre makeup class.

She had looked at other theatre departments at other universities but there was no competition to Hale. The facilities either seemed outdated or she felt marginalized by the faculty. "I felt like the the professors in USI's theatre department really saw me. So inevitably, coming to USI for theatre felt like the right thing to do." Hale will graduate from the University with a major in Theatre Arts and minors in French Language and African Studies.

"My French minor, in a way, fell into my lap. I saw I was taking many French courses for my degree program and fell in love with the language. Once I realized that there are many francophone countries in Africa, I felt the need to pick it up as a minor. I chose my African Studies minor because I desired to learn more about my heritage and the diaspora of African culture. Growing up in Montgomery, Alabama, the birthplace of the Civil Rights Movement, taught me a great deal about the impact of my people on this nation, and I wanted to know where it all truly began."

Hale performed in two productions: (left) Pygmalion and (right) Midsummer's Night Dream.

Hale at dress rehearsal for Songs for a New Year. USI chose this play because of the small cast and ability to control the social distancing protocols. Cast and crew always wore masks and the 2020-2021 season was filmed for virtual viewing.

Hale took piano lessons as a child. When she was cast as the organist for the radio play of It's A Wonderful Life, she was a flurry of nerves. "Playing piano is one thing. You only have two pedals and one keyboard. With an organ, you have multiple pedals, keyboards and stop knobs. It was a little stressful."

Hale credits part of her success from being active in student organizations. She is vice president of Black Student Union, a Student Ambassador, serves on the student advisory panel of the University's Equity, Diversity and Inclusion Committee and a member of the College of Liberal Arts Advisory Board.

Hale is not the only student from Montgomery, Alabama to discover USI's Theatre program, she followed in the footsteps of Jesmelia Willams '20 who was recognized by the National Committee of Kennedy Center American College Theatre Festival with the Distinguished Performance by an Actor award for her performance as Marianne Angelle in The Revolutionists.

Both Jesmelia Williams (right) '20 and Hale attended Booker T. Washington High School. Williams is an acting intern at the St. Louis Black Repertory Theatre. Williams in USI's production of The Revolutionists.

"I'd tell incoming freshmen to take college one step at a time. This journey is a marathon, not a sprint, and must be treated as such. Real life doesn't look like the picture-perfect photos we see in those pretty college brochures. But that doesn't mean that we can't make the most of every day that is given to us. Take the time to breathe, relax and refocus. The goal leaving college, may not be the same as the goal coming in to college. That's not bad, just a sign that you are growing. And that means you're doing the right thing."

Created By

Barbara Goodwin

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Credits:

Barbara J. Goodwin Elizabeth Courtney Randolph