And now for something completely different …
That famous Monty Python’s Flying Circus line fits Grove City College’s theatre honorary society’s weekend plans, which include writing, casting and performing as many as six one-act plays in a single day for its first-ever 24-hour Theatre Project. Such projects have become popular – and even competitive – on campuses throughout the U.S. and among professional theater companies.
“If it sounds a little crazy – well it probably is. But it is also pretty wonderful when it works. We hope we can make it work,” said Betsy Craig ’77, professor of English and advisor to Tau Alpha Pi, the theatre honorary.
The work begins at 6 p.m. Friday, Sept. 23, when an interested group of writers, directors, actors and technicians will gather at the Little Theater in Pew Fine Arts Center on campus. After a brief meeting, the group will be divided into teams and most participants will be sent home so the writers and directors can get to work crafting the plays. They’ll write their scripts until 7 a.m. Saturday, when the actors will begin rehearsals and technicians will start work on sets and lighting.
At 6 p.m. Saturday, they’ll stage their plays in front of an audience in the Little Theater. At this point, no one knows what that will be like or who will show up, Craig said. The project is not a total free-for-all. All the plays must use at least one common set piece, share some props and include the same line of dialog.
“We hope that people will find the idea intriguing. Our goal is to establish a possible new tradition that seeks to reach out to potential future students as well as to the Grove City community,” Craig said.
While the show is free – and open to the public – it also serves as a fundraiser for The Clean Mile, a community project that aims to donate “a mile’s worth” of cleaning products to the Grove City Food Pantry. Donations of money and cleaning products will be accepting at the performance.
The project is open to all Grove City College students. The cast and crew will also include a few area high school students and community members.