Second Studio, Southern Utah University’s student-run theatre group, will be hosting their second event of the year Friday, Sept. 9, through Saturday, Sept. 10. The event, called 24 Hour Theatre, will hold performances Saturday, Sept. 10 at 7:00 p.m. Tickets will be $3.
24 Hour Theatre is an event in which SUU students have one day to put together a short play. Students can sign up to be a writer, director or actor.
“Once a semester, on a Friday at 7:00 [p.m.], we give writers their prompts, and they write a brand-new original scene,” said Second Studio co-Showcase Director Nash Kenning-Ballesteros. “We start rehearsals the next morning and perform the next day at 7:00 p.m., so it’s a full 24 hours of just theatre.”
24 Hour Theatre will be Kenning-Ballesteros and co-Showcase Director Jett Larson’s first event in their positions, as well as the first major performance-based Second Studio event of the academic year. This will also be SUU’s first 24 Hour Theatre event in almost a year, as last spring’s event was canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. 
Holding an event like 24 Hour Theatre requires a lot of organization and planning, but ultimately, the success of the event comes down to the 24 hours during which the event actually runs.
“With theatre in general, it’s by the seat of our pants,” said Kenning-Ballesteros. “It’s very last second thrown together, and that is the spirit of collaborative art forms–that you can just spring together and connect people to create an experience.”
The theme for this year’s 24 Hour Theatre is “Running Up That Hill,” inspired by the song repopularized by “Stranger Things.” Writers will be prompted to include any one line from the song in their scenes.
The link to sign up can be found here. Those wanting to sign up may need to request permission to edit the document, but Kenning-Ballesteros is on standby to approve any requests.
“Live theatre cannot be emulated,” said Kenning-Ballesteros. “Even when it’s filmed, it’s very different, so come experience it! Also, there’s a lot of inside jokes that happen, so everyone loves to be on the inside of those.”
Article by: Tessa Cheshire
accent@suunews.net
Photos courtesy of Second Studio
