Against the Ticking Clock with the 24 Hour Play
Coming back for its 8th year in a row, Panther Creek High School presents the 24 Hour Play Festival, an event held from Friday, October 4th to Saturday, October 5th.
Starting Friday afternoon, students from all grades will be participating in the event as a writer, director, actor, or part of the tech crew. They will be split into randomly assigned groups and will have only twenty-four hours to write, rehearse, memorize, and produce the plays. On Saturday night at 7pm, a final performance of each play is held in front of a live audience.
“For the first [three] hours, writers will write their story and then all the rest of the hours is literally just practicing and directing their play, and then it’s performed late at night,” junior and participating actor Kira Nuviae explains.
“It’s all students — directors, writers, actors — all students,” sophomore actor Kiya Shahidi clarifies.
Mr. Bing Cox, Panther Creek’s only theatre teacher and administrator of the festival, mentions that he had gotten the idea from watching professional theatre companies produce their own 24 Hour Play Festival. Eight years ago, Mr. Cox decided to bring a modified version of the festival to Panther Creek and see what students could come up with.
“We start at 2:30 and work to about 9:30 that evening, send them home, and they come back,” Mr. Cox explains. “…In that period we get a bunch of short plays and they’re usually very good.”
Every year students get excited for the annual play. “…It’s both a tradition and an integral part of Panther Creek theatre,” senior Brandon Fowlin, an actor and writer, says. “…It’s always really successful, and people just really like doing it…It’s really fun,” Diane Caffrey, a senior and director, commented.
Other students are encouraged to come support the theatre department and their production held in the PCHS auditorium. Tickets are only $5 at the door and performances start at 7pm.
