Theater for insomniacs

Insomnia theater is a club that take a unique twist on how putting on a production works. They use a condensed 24-hour period to audition, write, direct, and perform a 10 to 15 minute piece for an audience located in the Underground of the Student Center.

Admission is only $3 and homemade backed goods can be bought at the concessions stand. The process of creating a play in a single day may sound a little intense, but students said they find it to be an exciting opportunity to get our of their comfort zone. There’s a hardly a time commitment, so it’s accessible for people with hectic schedules or that are new to the theater world.

Insomnia participants said the team is “kind of like a family.” It’s a moderately small club, which members said is always looking for new members. Student reported to the 3rd floor of the SAC, enter the village, to sign up in room 329. They first chose whether to be an actor, director, writer, playwright in residence, crew, or even just sign up to get more information about the club without committing to anything.

Auditions took place be on Friday, Sept. 20 at 7 p.m. in room 207 the Student Center.

Actors auditioned Friday night, using monologues, songs, cartwheels, and even fire juggling to showcase their acting potential. Once all the actors auditioned they were allowed to leave. Afterward, writers and directors fought for who they wanted in their shows. Once that’s all said and done, the directors went home and the writers wrote their shows throughout the rest of the night. When everyone reconvened at 8 a.m., actors recieved their scripts and writers could catch up on sleep. The whole day Saturday focused on blocking, costuming, and learning lines for that nights performance.

A cabaret performance catered to musically inclined participants, but it doesn’t fit in the 24 hour deadline. There are roughly two weeks of rehearsals before the show will debut.

Insomnia Theaters has a marketing team, fundraising team, and a group that goes to an inner city school and gave them a theater company. You can find the group on Facebook, follow them on Twitter @InsomniaTheater and follow them on Instagram.