An entire play in just one day

Imagine putting on a full-scale theater production in just 24 hours — writing, directing, designing, and performing. In a single day, you meet your crew, write and learn your lines, and take to the stage.

For students in Clark University Players Society’s (CUPS) annual “Play in a Day” festival, this challenge became a reality.

Students eager to test their creative limits selected roles they’d take on for the chaotic event on Feb.7-8. Play in a Day requires a production team, writers, directors, actors, props and costumes, and set design to bring this pipe dream to life. Once teams were assembled and responsibilities assigned, the countdown began.

Here’s how the 24 hours unfolded for two of the teams:

9:30 p.m. – The night of Feb. 7 begins as the CUPS executive board unveils the long-awaited theme of the event: Truth and Justice. Writers huddle, ideas sparking in real time as they prepare to create entire worlds in just eight short hours. Meanwhile, the rest of the creative teams receive their schedules — 24 hours of controlled chaos has begun.

6 a.m. – Bleary-eyed but triumphant, the two writing teams consisting of Hailey Sullivan ’26, Maddy Siciliano ’26, and Cecilia Bacana ’24, CDP ’25, submit their scripts to the e-board members on call the morning of Feb. 8. Siciliano and Bacana have crafted a dramatic comedy that follows a young man (Nathan Kellie ’28) as he attempts to reconnect with his grandfather (Asher Rosenfeld ’26) while grappling with his father’s (Kyle Przystas ’25) strained relationship with the man and their tense family history. Their story culminates in a pivotal decision at the grandfather’s doorstep. Under the direction of Vivian Young ’26, this vision takes shape as “So Knock!”

Meanwhile, Sullivan has penned “Brainstorming,” a play that delves into the emotional turmoil of holding a friend accountable. Grayson Costigan ’27 and Sydney Emerson ’28 portray concerned friends preparing for a difficult conversation about their buddy Jessie’s destructive habits, brought to life by Cole Smith ’27.

Director Devin Moss ’26, drawn to the event for its fast-paced and collaborative nature, embraces the challenge of shaping a production in mere hours. “I have been looking for opportunities to direct at Clark, and the low-stakes and low-time commitment of ‘Play in a Day’ made that feasible for me, I also enjoy a challenge and trying to make something out of nothing very quickly,” Moss says. “Having a great team of actors and designers made the long day fly by.”

The first hurdle is cleared, but there’s no time to celebrate. As writers collapse into a brief and well-earned rest, directors steel themselves for the next day’s challenge: auditions.

9 a.m. – Actors arrived, scripts in hand, prepared to make an impression in just thirty minutes. At 9:30, the directors make quick, calculated decisions — this cast is who they’ll be working with for the next 12 hours.

10 a.m. – With scripts in hand and coffee-fueled determination, the teams begin rehearsals. Actors and directors carve out stories shaping performances on a healthy mix of instinct, excitement, and adrenaline.

Noon – While actors rehearse, the designers convene, selecting their productions and diving headfirst into the scavenger hunt that is production design. Audrey Roller ’25 heads the costume department, while Alex Donato ’26 begins to form the directors’ and writers’ visions into reality with set dressing. From scouring campus for props to dashing to the thrift store to secure costumes to crafting makeshift set pieces, every minute counts.

1 p.m. – A moment of stillness arrives as the teams gather for lunch. Worcester Pizza Factory fuels the creative frenzy, offering e-board members their first chance to check in across all productions. But the moment is fleeting and by 2 p.m., it’s back to work.

4 p.m. – The dreaded stumble-through marks the halfway point. Rehearsals collide as casts gather for a rough run-through. It’s a stumble-through in the truest sense, as designers begin shaping the raw performances into something festival-ready. Interruptions are inevitable and frequent, but problem-solving is part of the process.

5 p.m. – Designers huddle with scripts in hand, marking cues and making last-minute adjustments. Every set piece, prop, and mark must be accounted for. Precision matters, but so does adaptability.

6:30 p.m. – Teams break for a well-deserved dinner. With just an hour before doors open, the entire production must relocate from the Michelson Theater to the Experimental Theatre. Chaos ensues, but alongside it sprouts an emboldened sense of creativity.

8 p.m. – Cast, crew, and e-board members rally together. CUPS President Weslee Tyler ’27 leads a crew focused on damage control so creative teams have time to refine.

“Seeing our cast, crew, and production team pull it all together in such a short amount of time was amazing,” Tyler says. “I was so inspired by the creativity and hard work everyone put into this production. I think it’s so important that CUPS continues to put on events like this that provide non-traditional theatrical opportunities for students to express themselves.”

In the final hour, lighting and blocking must adapt on the fly. What should have been a polished final hour of prep becomes a whirlwind of reinvention. And yet, the show must — and will — go on. 

9 p.m. – Showtime. The seats that were empty just an hour before are now filled with eager audience members. Scripts that were nothing but daydreams and ideas 24 hours ago come to life before a captivated crowd of Clarkies. The lights flash on, applause dissipates, the stage falls silent. And the performance begins.

Despite the time constraints, interruptions, and last-minute changes, a sold-out Experimental Theatre experienced a spontaneous and community-centered burst of creativity. CUPS will host several performances this semester that are open to all students and range from a murder mystery party in March to a symposium for prospective actors to showcase public domain monologues or scenes in early April. For news and updates visit CUPS’s website.