Wolfpack Theatre tackles 10 original plays in 24 hours

The Wolfpack Theatre Company at Glacier High School will team up with GHS alumni and current GHS students and staff to participate in an extreme rite of theater — writing, directing and performing six to 10 original short plays, all in just 24 hours. Billed as “24 Hour Plays,” this intense process of play creation will take place Feb. 4 and 5 in the Wolfpack Theatre at GHS.

Everyone is invited to come watch the final production of this two-day innovative event Saturday, Feb. 5 at 6:33 p.m. Tickets are $5 at the door.

“After being dormant for four years, we are presenting our sixth annual ‘24 Hour Plays’ project,” said Ivanna Fritz, director of the Wolfpack Theatre Company. “After the great success of the last four events we are excited to attack this project again. It's a great way for students, staff and alumni to connect or re-connect with the Glacier community.”

The creative process begins at 3:33 p.m. Friday, Feb. 4, the night before the show. After everyone has been briefed and the actors have worked through improvisations and auditions, the writers begin to select their casts and get imaginative. Each writer composes a 10-minute original play.

At 6:30 a.m. the following morning, the directors return, read the plays, and battle for the script they want to direct. The casts meet for the first time at 8 a.m., discover their roles and quickly get to work rehearsing. With just less than 12 hours of script time and 20 minutes of technical rehearsals the entire company is ready for the audience to arrive. The doors open at 6 p.m., and at 6:33 p.m., even as the ink is still wet on the page, the new plays premiere for a live audience.

"I first heard about the “24 Hour Play Project” several years ago when a couple of our graduates told us about the project in New York and in California,” said Greg Adkins, a member of the Wolfpack Theatre Company staff. “It really sounded dynamic, and I love the creative elements. Working on a production with a 24-hour deadline is pretty intense!"

“This is a great project that helps bring together past and present theatre students,” Fritz said. “We have a saying at Glacier that ‘Tradition never graduates.’ That couldn't be more true for the Wolfpack Theatre Company. Our former students come back and support us by attending shows; now we'd like them to be a part of it.”

For more information, contact Fritz at fritzi@sd5.k12.mt.us