Feb. 5, 2020
FORT WAYNE, Ind. — Concordia Lutheran High School will once again to host a 24-hour Theatre Festival for its students on Friday, Feb. 14 and Saturday, Feb. 15 where they create, produce and showcase a new show within 24 hours. The plays will be showcased at 7 p.m. Feb. 15. Cost for the shows is $2 or a canned good, which will be donated to CANstruction.
“Last year's 24-Hour Theatre Festival was a huge success, and we are looking forward to the same level of excitement and quality this year,” said Chris Murphy, director of theatrical arts. “We have close to 90 students involved as well as about 15 adults who are all working hard to ensure an excellent experience for all those involved.”
All students throughout the school are encouraged to participate. Students will participate as playwrights, directors, actors, costumers, makeup artists, sound and light technicians and stage managers.
Once those roles have been decided the night proceeds as follows:
Hour 1: 7:00 p.m., Friday - Playwrights gather and, with the limited guidance of English and Theater teachers, begin to write their shows. They will brainstorm, write and rewrite.
Hour 5: Midnight, Friday - Playwrights gather together and read their plays to each other. They receive constructive suggestions from both students and adults. They then return to the drawing table and complete their final drafts by 7:00 a.m. Once finished, they can nap until the next group arrives.
Hour 12: 7:00 a.m., Saturday - Scripts are copied and directors arrive. There is a final read-through and then the playwrights pass off their plays to the directors, and go home to get some sleep. Directors now cast their shows. No auditions are held; decisions are made based on the students who were “cast” as actors. Actors arrive at 9:00 a.m. to begin their work.
Hour 18: 1:00 p.m., Saturday - Rehearsals are in full blast, actors are memorizing lines, sets are being designed, props being found and scrounged, and lights/sound are being adjusted.
Hour 20: 4:00 p.m., Saturday - Each show gets 30 minutes of tech time on the stage.
Hour 24: 7:00 p.m., Saturday - The house lights dim and the audience arrives to enjoy the wonderful productions, which, a mere 24 hours ago, didn’t exist.
Concordia Lutheran High School, located at 1601 St. Joe River Drive in Fort Wayne, Ind., was founded in 1935 as a private, co-educational Lutheran high school open to students of all faiths and backgrounds. With Christ at the center, Concordia continues to pursue educational excellence that equips individuals for lifelong learning and service as disciples of Jesus Christ. Learn more at www.clhscadets.com.