Art Started and Completed in 24 Hours
Danielle Sonnenberg
In one 24-hour period, six plays are written, directed and produced. There is no turning back, no matter what. Tina Fallon conceived this project, inspired by Scott McClouds’ 24-Hour Comics, an event where artists create a 24-page comic book in 24-hours. The 24-Hour Plays have been produced all over the world, including New York, London, Los Angeles, Germany and Chicago. This is the fifth year that the proceeds went to benefit Working Playground, an organization that brings arts into New York City classrooms. The show, held at the American Airlines Theatre, opened with a student reading a poem entitled "Why I Write." This year, the show raised $100,000, the highest amount in the last five years. Some of the money from ticket sales also went to Hurricane Katrina relief efforts.
The intended one time only event was performed on Manhattan’s lower East Side ten years ago. The process began on a Sunday night at 10 p.m. with every participant donating a prop and costume. Then the work began. The writers worked all night to produce a ten-minute play. The actors arrived in the morning. The directors did the staging and finally, tech and lighting. The work continued, literally, right up until the audience entered.
Some of the actors this year included: Hayden Christensen, Charlotte d’Amboise, Andrew McCarthy, Anthony Rapp, Adam Pascal, Rosie Perez, Tracie Thoms, Ally Sheedy, Wilson Jermaine Heredia and Rachael Dratch. The opportunity to experience the adrenaline rush one gets from learning lines in such a short period of time thrilled the actors. "It’s like bungee jumping; it was completely mind driven. I was on automatic pilot," said Wilson Jermaine Heredia, who performed in the play This is Now. Another actor said, "It’s not so much about learning the lines of the character, but rather the thoughts of the character."
Actors not only enjoyed the experience but also learned from it. Tracie Thoms said, "It teaches actors to keep the sharpness of their chops." Andrew McCarthy said, "It allowed me to cut loose."
Actors experienced a sense of community backstage. "People must commit to each other and move forward in that spirit. Actors learn to trust their instincts. Anything that doesn?t serve the show must be disregarded," said Fallon.
One play, In the Dark, written by Warren Leight, was about four siblings who get together at their parent’s home in a hurricane. Another play, The Windows, written by Adam Bock, was about three dancers who go to a window-cleaning job in the hope that the owner of the apartment, a producer, will cast them in a Broadway show.
When asked what drama arises in creating a�show in such time constraints, Fallon replied, "There is little drama other then the drama inherent in the creative process."
