Despite a turbulent year for the arts across the country and budget cuts here at Whitman, the theater department has brought back the Instant Play Festival, a successful program started last year that teaches students about the playwriting process.
The festival, proposed and designed by Associate Professor of Theatre Chris Petit, includes a three-week series of workshops in which student writers learn about and practice playwriting under the guide of guest playwrights. This culminates into two performance events that introduce the young writers’ new plays: all written the night before and rehearsed and organized the day of the performances.
“It makes for great theater,” said Petit. “When you’re forced, because of time restraints, to follow your initial instincts fully, often what emerges is a deeper sense of creativity and imagination than what might happen with more time to censor those impulses. It is a wonderful lesson for young artists and extremely useful for their development.”
Although the college budget cuts reduced the theater department’s guest artist endowment, Theatre Department Director and Garrett Professor of Dramatic Art Nancy Simon ensured that they “are all very careful with…expenditures” in order to bring back their programs, including the Instant Play Festival.
“This year we will reduce all production budgets by 7 percent and bring in fewer guest artists,” said Simon. “Because we are unable to offer playwriting in our curriculum, we felt it was vital to maintain the funds for visiting playwrights from our guest artist budget.”
The positive response, packed auditorium, department and community interest and available budget also helped ensure the return of the festival.
“The program came back because of last year’s success and our desire to expand the department’s curriculum by offering the writing workshops,” said Petit. “The program is part of the Harper Joy Theater season and is paid for by that operating budget.”
Although the festival is one of “minimal” expenditure, according to Simon, the budget used goes mostly towards bringing in guest playwrights. This year, 13 Whitman student writers will learn under the tutelage of three playwrights: returning playwright from last year’s festival Kristen Kosmas, and new faces Adama Rapp and Sheri Wilner.
Each professional playwright will introduce the student writers to the playwriting world, as well as present various techniques, structures, forms, approaches to writing and prompts.
While the basic structure of the festival is the same as last year’s, Petit hopes that the intrigue of a lively, energetic and instantaneous event will draw campus members to Harper Joy.
“Last year I had many people come up to me after the performance and say that they have been part of the Whitman community for years but have never stepped into the Harper Joy Theater until the festival. I think the festival helps to bring people out to the theater and keeps Harper Joy at the center of our community.”
The Instant Play Festival runs Saturday and Sunday, Sept. 26 and 27, on the Alexander stage. Students wishing to be involved in the performance will be able to sign up the week prior to the event.
