USF’s School of Theatre and Dance is hosting the fifth annual Voices of Women Theatre Festival.

The festival is held during Women’s History Month by a nonprofit dedicated to giving women a voice through storytelling.

USF students Hannah Nguyen, Alexis Agnew, Haley Goodfield, Triniti Brewer and Jasmine Bowen are promoting the festival.

They will help with the “Her Stories” initiative, which is the theme for this year’s free-for-students festival. The festival, running from March 27-30, will showcase two full-length narratives and seven short plays from women of diverse backgrounds.

Agnew, a junior business major, said she is helping the festival because there needs to be more “empowerment.”

“Giving women voices and a platform to speak up, I think it’s really important as women,” Agnew said.

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One of the plays is produced by Erin Considine, a former dancer and sword fighter living in Atlanta. Her play “Growth,” which is about dealing with a disability will be showcased on March 27 at 7:30 p.m.

Agnew said that is the play she is most excited for.

Considine is 51 years old and was diagnosed with two autoimmune diseases – Hashimoto thyroiditis and Myasthenia gravis – when she was 38. She said she wanted to portray the struggles of living with chronic illness in a human way, instead of clinical.

Considine said she hopes her play will make USF students with disabilities feel less isolated, and remind them their voice counts.

“I think it starts a really interesting discussion for anybody struggling with these problems and makes you feel less alone,” Considine said. “It gives you a window into how you could help someone else who is struggling.”

She noted that 80% of those with autoimmune diseases are women, according to a 2020 study in the National Library of Medicine.

“I wanted to address it in a way that wasn’t just 90 minutes of despair but instead was almost a fairytale with magical elements, dance and humor,” Considine said. “These kinds of plays, written in our voices and for other women facing the same issues, are vital.”

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Hannah Nguyen, one of the USF students, emphasized the empowering effect of the initiative.

“The organization empowers me by showing me I can do anything I want,” Nguyen said. “It’s helped me push to accomplish my goals the way these women playwriters are.”

Jenna Jane, an Orlando native, will present her short play “Villain” at 7:30 p.m. on March 28.

Jane said her play is a comedy inspired by growing up watching Disney films, where an “evil queen” will share her side of the story for the first time.

Jane said she enjoys writing about gender and platforming women’s voices in an industry where women are “underrepresented.”

Only 29% of plays produced are written by women, according to the Dramatists Guild.

With the impact of arts funding being cut in Florida, Jane said hearing women’s stories has never been more important.

“It’s almost an act of defiance to get on stage and tell women’s stories and let their voices be heard,” Jane said. “That’s a shame because women have a lot of important things to say.”

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Other plays featured at the festival include “Ama. Egg. Oyá.” by Lori Felipe-Barkin, which explores infertility and motherhood, “Dancing Egrets” by Dawn Truax, about a young man who plans to commit suicide but is stopped, and “Cassie Had a Livejournal” by Jennifer A. Kokai, which tells the story of two best friends reuniting after 20 years.

USF’s “portion” of the festival is completely funded through the Dishman Fund for Playwriting. State money will not be used to fund the project, said Marketing Director Deb Kelley.

Kelley said she is hoping to work with an American Sign Language class at USF to offer sign language interpretation at the festival for the first time, which she said was an idea from a student.

The festival promises to be an empowering event for audiences at USF and beyond, Kelley said.

“We want to give back to the community because it’s important,” Kelley said.