In the two years that Performing Arts To Serve Others (PATSO) has been operating, they’ve successfully pulled off two 24 Hour Xtreme Theater events, which is no small feat.
The 24 Hour Xtreme Theater event is a whirlwind event in which participants are placed in eight teams, each with roles assigned to them—writers, actors, directors, technicians, and even moms, who were supportive roles designed to help others stay on track. Everyone has exactly 24 hours to write, produce, and perform a play.
The nature of this event is similar to the nature of PATSO, a group created to allow students of all skill levels to participate in performing arts without the time constraint that a large-scale production creates.
For the second year, President Daniel Robey and members have added a new theme, a new challenge, and a new guest speaker. This year’s guest speaker is Pulitzer nominee, Leigh Allison Wilson.
“We are hoping that this collaboration will energize our creators and performers and bring our events to a new height of excitement,” Robey said in an email.
To make the short performances more cohesive, PATSO established a theme. This year’s theme was “Truth and Lies,” which Wilson helped Robey and team come up with.
The theme makes things cohesive, but also shows the number of ways writers can go with one theme. The challenge this year was incorporating candles into the play without the writers adding it to the script.
The event started with a kickoff where participants learned their roles and their teams. After that, each group broke into workshops—writers brainstorming, actors preparing, and directors planning. The workshop lasted an hour and from there the writers took over and began writing their ten page script.
The writers worked through the night, from 9:30 p.m. to 6:30 a.m., when scripts are due. After scripts are turned in, actors and directors work through memorizing and bringing the script to life.
During this time, moms start working alongside participants. Sierra Roberts, PATSO Treasurer and junior, has the role of Head Mom.
“I oversee the whole event, but really make sure that people are taking care of themselves,” Roberts said.
Since the event is extreme and intensive, the moms are there to make sure that though the schedule is tight, no one neglects their mental and physical health during the process.
“Participants take what we call ‘brain breaks,’” Roberts said. “They take 30 minute breaks to breathe, they can color, do something to break up their work.”
Moms also take care of the cast mentally, giving them pep talks before their performances, reminding them that mistakes are normal and they should be proud of their work.
At 8 p.m. Saturday, the audience crowded the doors and waited to see the final products. The seats filled up within minutes of the door opening, fitting about 85 people in Convergent Media Center room 121.
Each one-act had two or three actors and ranged from comedies to tragedies, plays to musicals, and topics of love to horror.
The 24 Hour Xtreme Theater event is a participatory event, but at the end of the show the audience gets to vote through monetary donations for acts to become Audience Choice Favorite. The voting went toward funding Cap Cupboard, a food pantry on campus for those who don’t have access to the food they need. The event raised over $100 just from the voting.
This year, there was a tie for audience favorite, between “I Wasn’t Happy About It,” a musical written by Gareth Evans, directed by Daniel Robey, and performed by Audrey Cann and Danny Kuder, and “Out in the Yard,” a play written by Sonata Wilson, directed by Lindsey Polcyn, and performed by Taylor Ervin and MacKenzie Lange.
“It was pretty nerve-wracking between coming up with five songs on top of memorizing the script and choreography,” Kuder, senior, said. “But, it was one of the most fun shows I’ve ever done.”
PATSO has much to look forward to, building off of the success of the 24 Hour Xtreme Theater event, work toward their next feature length play “Leaving Iowa,” showing April 5, 6, and 7 in the Cabaret Theater.
