On September 29, English and Creative Writing majors Naomi Sims and Schuyler Kunkel participated in the Ashland University Theatre Department's 24-Hour Theatre Project, which involved the writing, production, and performance of an original script within a 24-hour period. Sims and Kunkel drew heavily on their finely-tuned writing skills to contribute to the project. Kunkel offers the following reflection on her experience, highlighting how her writing skills as an English and Creative Writing major assisted her with the project:
I was on the writing team, costume design team, and lighting team, and I also helped out with other teams, such as scenic design, when they needed extra hands.
I learned so much from this project. Going into it, I was very unsure as to how the script writing was going to work since there were five of us that were going to be trying to write at the same time; however, the writing process was really interesting, and it worked out quite well. We each took a scene to write the original draft of, and then we went through three rounds of edits—during which we traded scenes so that there would be one continuous voice through out as opposed to five distinct voices. In addition to writing, I learned a lot in the other areas that I contributed in as well. I would say that I was definitely most out of my comfort zone when I was helping move the lights for the set because I had to go up in a lift, and I’m a bit afraid of heights.
The most rewarding thing about this project by far was seeing our idea go from simply a concept to a full production, and it was really amazing being able to be a part of the project in so many different ways. Despite the fact that, by the time I got home, I hadn’t slept in over 40 hours, I was so glad to have been able to contribute throughout the entire process. The production surpassed all my expectations, and I am beyond thankful to have been able to be a part of such an extraordinary opportunity.
Reflecting further on the overall experience, Sims offers these thoughts:
I was the Producer and Lead Writer for this year's 24 Hour Theatre Project. As Producer I organized all the participants into teams and ensured each department had all of the information and tools that they needed in order to create a show from scratch. We held production meetings with the team leaders every week leading up to the event to check in and plan ahead as much as we could. During the 24 Hours I coordinated the event and made sure we stayed on schedule (as much as we could). It was an exhilarating and intense experience. It was challenging and required a lot of creative problem solving to troubleshoot issues we never saw coming. What I loved most was getting together with an amazing group of people who were committed to getting the job done no matter what. Many of us went without sleep for most if not all of the 24 hours but no one complained and everyone just worked very hard throughout the whole process. It was an amazing experience to see something that I had been planning since before the school year started, and something that I wrote, to come together on stage and make the audience laugh. It was so gratifying and I could not have been happier with the results. It is hard to describe the joy and feeling of accomplishment we felt after the show when all of the hard work, sweat, and tears paid off. It was well worth the lack of sleep and I would definitely do it again! It was an unforgettable experience.
The department congratulates Kunkel, Sims, and Eric Breeden (ILA major who also worked on the 24-hour theatre project) on their valuable contributions to the arts at Ashland University.
