One of the most rigorous and exciting talent development initiatives, The 24 Hour Plays, are coming back to the UK after a break of nearly ten years. The Lawrence Batley Theatre in Huddersfield, working in partnership with The 24 Hour Plays in New York, is delighted to announce the return of the process with the newly created The 24 Hour Plays UK.
Over the course of 24 hours, six writers, six directors, six producers and twenty-four actors from across the UK will come together to create six brand new short plays, which will be staged at the Lawrence Batley Theatre on Sunday 3 May 2020.
The 24 Hour Plays UK provide a unique opportunity for emerging artists, at no cost, to develop their skills but also to build relationships with their peers that will serve them throughout their careers. The project will also offer the UK’s best emerging theatremakers mentoring from some of the UK’s leading voices in each theatre discipline. Olivier Award-winning actress Sheila Atim MBE, ‘In The Heights’ producer Paul Taylor-Mills, critically acclaimed playwright Amanda Whittington and ‘The James Plays’ and former Artistic Director of National Theatre Scotland Laurie Sansom will mentor the participants, alongside other mentors to be announced in the coming weeks.
The 24 Hour Plays UK are open to any actors, writers, directors and producers who feel that they would benefit from the process, and applications are now open at www.the24hrplays.co.uk, with a closing date of Friday 14 February 2020.
Paul Taylor-Mills, Mentor Producer, said: “This is such an incredible scheme. The 24 Hour Plays allow artists to follow their instincts, to learn new skills, to make mistakes, to meet incredible future collaborators, and most importantly, to play. It’s great that they’re back, and I can’t wait to meet the class of 2020.”
Henry Filloux-Bennett, Chief Executive and Artistic Director of the Lawrence Batley Theatre, said: “I am so thrilled to be working with The 24 Hour Plays in New York to bring The 24 Hour Plays back to the UK. Having taken part in the process back in 2008, it is still undoubtedly one of the highlights of my career to date. The buzz and excitement of getting to work with so many peers in such an intense creative environment was absolutely incredible, and I can’t wait to see how a new group of emerging artists takes on the challenge.
Mark Armstrong, Artistic Director of The 24 Hour Plays in New York, said: “As we’ve learned over 25 years here in New York and around the world, The 24 Hour Plays are the best way to bring any community of artists together for a transformative experience, but they provide an especially meaningful experience for the young artists who’ve used this experience to launch important careers. We’re delighted to be bringing The 24 Hour Plays back to the UK. Many of the prior participants have gone on to significant careers in UK theatre and we’re looking forward to welcoming the next group of new artists this time around.”
