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The countdown begins: Toledo community to write, direct and perform plays all within 24 hours

Joe Heidenescher, Associate Community Editor

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University of Toledo students come together again to race against the clock in their annual effort to write, produce and perform works of theatre.

“24 Hour Plays almost seems like an impossible feat,” said Ashley Stephens, a fifth-year theatre major and vice-president of Alpha Psi Omega, the theatre honor society that hosts the event.

“All plays are written, directed and performed in 24 hours. The groups are not even put together until that night,” Stephens said.

The overnight event will be located at the Ohio Theatre, 3114 Lagrange St. in Toledo. The event will begin on Dec. 12. The theatre pieces that will be written by students will be performed at 7:30 p.m. on Dec. 13.

Andrea Harris, a fifth-year theatre and film major and co-director of photography at The Independent Collegian, said she participated in 24 Hour Plays her freshman year.

“I learned how to think on my feet, how to understand my text in a short amount of time and how to improve,” Harris said.

According to Harris, the event is open to everyone in the community, even non-theatre majors and non-UT students.

“It’s a great experience where people from any major as well as people who aren’t UT students come together to create a whole different show,” said Gina Gass, a fourth-year theatre and communication major. “It’s a really great way to see the magic of theatre and collaboration come together to create something original.”

Harris said that working with a new group of people in a short, limited time is a good experience.

“The experience trains one to think on their feet,” she said. “Make quick character choices movements, character biography etc. It’s a lot of fun; you do not know what the text is until you come in the next day. You learn how to memorize your lines Italian-style, which is a cool way to say you remember each word and repeat them in a rapid succession so that it sticks.”

Stephens said the entire event is participant-led and the productions are written, directed and performed by students and those involved. Professors do not direct, write or lead. Their role is to guide and help when needed.

“24 Hour Plays is my favorite event at UT because, since it is led by students, there is a very open, collaborative nature to all the projects,” Stephens said. “Everyone’s opinions are valued. It’s such a fun experience to be a part of a production run by peers. You’d be surprised what student and alumni writers can create in such a short time.”

Because the clock is counting down the hours, the participants have very little time to work on every aspect of the performance. Throughout their time, they work through a rapid schedule.

“It starts on December 12th where everyone gets to meet their team members and then the writing begins into the night,” Gass said. “In the morning, directors come and read the newly-written plays and the actors meet and by the next night a set of new plays is created. It’s a definite life-changing thing because it gives you a new challenge and you learn what your strengths are as an individual and you get to meet new people.”

Because every year there are new people collaborating in a crunched time frame, the plays are always different, according to Stephens. She said they range from very serious to light-hearted.

“The spontaneity of this production process is what makes it so thrilling; there is no way to predict how the pieces will end up,” Stephens said. “I’ve always believed that theatre has the power to affect audiences deeply to convey social and political ideas, or even superficially to entertain. Anyone can be involved in 24 Hour Plays and the magic is that there are no limitations or censors on our creative process.”

Stephens said that 24 Hour Plays is a great way to be involved in theatre without having to commit months of time. Since the entire process is squeezed into a short span of one day, more students find time to participate, she said.

“Being involved in 24 Hours Plays is like being involved in any theatre production, it is time-consuming, involves commitment and the capability to collaborate,” she said. “It is equally as rewarding as it is difficult. The difference in 24 Hour Plays is that it is not as time-consuming, way more fast-paced and dependent on all participants’ creative integrity.”

According to Stephens, the event raises money for Alpha Psi Omega to send students to local theatre festivals.

The event will cost $5 at the door for general admission, $3 for students and seniors.

Harris, Gass and Stephens all agree that the event is something all students should participate in or at least see at one point in their time at UT.

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Serving the University of Toledo community since 1919.
The countdown begins: Toledo community to write, direct and perform plays all within 24 hours