The 24 Hour Musicals, January 21st - click here for tix!

Here's the link for tickets to The 24 Hour Musicals:
www.exchangenyc.org/24

What are The 24 Hour Musicals, you ask?

read our press release below!


Press Contact for THE 24 HOUR PLAYS: Brett Oberman, Keith Sherman & Associates, (212) 764-7900 / brett@ksa-pr..com


The 24 Hour Company and the Exchange

PRESENT THE 1ST ANNUAL PRODUCTION OF

THE 24 HOUR MUSICALS

ONE-NIGHT-ONLY BENEFIT FOR THE ORCHARD PROJECT AND THE EXCHANGE

MONDAY, JANUARY 21st AT JOE’S PUB



PARTICIPATING ARTISTS INCLUDE

Celia Keenan Bolger Kerry Butler Victoria Clark Gavin Creel

Cheyenne Jackson Moises Kaufman Nellie McKay

Denis O'Hare Mo Rocca Claudia Shear Ted Sperling

Tracie Thoms Rita Wilson David Yazbeck



On January 21st, 2008, The 24 Hour Company will team with the Exchange to produce The 24 Hour Musicals. Presented in association with New York magazine and Joe’s Pub, four brand new musicals will be written, cast, rehearsed and performed at Joe’s Pub in a single day, featuring with an all-new all-star line up of Broadway performers, great composers, writers, directors, choreographers and musical directors. Led by creative director Ted Sperling (musical director of Light in the Piazza, Dirty Rotten Scoundrels and South Pacific and director of the Public’s See What I Wanna See and Striking 12), the participants will be a who’s who of American musical theatre, all working under one roof in the smallest amount of time.



Featuring Celia Keenan Bolger (TONY nominee, SPELLING BEE, LES MIS), Kerry Butler (XANADU, HAIRSPRAY, LITTLE SHOP OF HORRORS), Victoria Clark (TONY winner, LIGHT IN THE PIAZZA), Gavin Creel (TONY nominee, THOROUGHLY MODERN MILLIE), Cheyenne Jackson (ALL SHOOK UP, XANADU), Moises Kaufman (LARAMIE PROJECT, I AM MY OWN WIFE), Nellie McKay (singer/songwriter, THREE PENNY OPERA), Denis O'Hare (TONY winner, TAKE ME OUT), Mo Rocca (SPELLING BEE, NPR, DAILY SHOW), Claudia Shear (TONY nominee, DIRTY BLONDE), Ted Sperling (TONY winner, LIGHT IN THE PIAZZA, STRIKING 12, SEE WHAT I WANNA SEE), Tracie Thoms (RENT - THE MOVIE, COLD CASE), Rita Wilson (CHICAGO, SLEEPLESS IN SEATTLE, RUNAWAY BRIDE), David Yazbeck (composer, FULL MONTY, DIRTY ROTTEN SCOUNDRELS)


The creative process for THE 24 HOUR MUSICALS will begin at 10PM on Sunday, January 20th – the night before the show – when a group of four writer-composer-lyricist teams, four directors, 16 performers, and a production staff gather at Joe’s Pub. After casts and crews have been briefed, each writer is tasked with composing a 15-minute play by 7 AM the following morning, when the directors return to read and select their piece. The casts will meet for the first time at 8 AM and, over the next 12 hours, the plays are rehearsed and produced for a live presentation. At 8:00 PM, ink barely dry, the six new plays – interspersed with six musical acts – will be performed for a live audience.



Proceeds from The 24 Hour Musicals benefit the Exchange, a NYC not-for-profit that develops new theatre work through productions and its development center for innovative theatre companies and artists in the Catskills, the Orchard Project.



The exclusive print media sponsor for The 24 Hour Musicals is New York Magazine.



The 24 Hour Musicals is presented in association with Joe’s Pub.



To enquire about tickets and tables to this event, visit http://www.24hourplays.com/ or contact the 646-502-7453.





About THE 24 HOUR COMPANY
Founded by the creator of The 24 Hour Plays, The 24 Hour Company is a group of artists and producers that has mounted over 300 short plays since 1995 --all written, cast, rehearsed and performed in a single day. Paper Magazine wrote “the quality of the plays is remarkable,” and the Village Voice adds, “Here was the energy missing from the Ludlow scene... theatricality as life, as subversion, even survival.” The rotating cast and crew of The 24 Hour Plays have performed for sold-out houses at the American Airlines Theater, The Old Vic, Atlantic Theater, Minetta Lane Theater, 45 Bleecker Theater, the NY International Fringe Festival and other downtown venues in New York, as well as in Chicago, Los Angeles and London. Participants have included diverse talents from all levels— from Tony, Oscar and Pulitzer Prize winners to emerging talent and high school students. For more information, visit http://www.24hourplays.com/.



About the EXCHANGE
The Exchange reinterprets classic texts and supports development in order to create the classics of the future. Unlike other theatre companies, the Exchange supports the work of a number of other artists and companies through its renowned Orchard Project retreat in upstate New York (www.orchardproject.com) and with initiatives such as the Kesselring Fellowship, a writing award it presents in partnership with the National Arts Club.



Listings information for THE 24 HOUR MUSICALS

THE 24 HOUR MUSICALS on Monday, January 21st at Joe’s Pub (425 Lafayette Street, New York, NY 10003). Cocktails and dinner at 6pm, performance at 7pm. This year’s participating artists include Denis O’Hare, Victoria Clark, Tracie Thoms, Cheyenne Jackson, and Rita Wilson. (All participating artists are subject to change.) Via Subway, take the 6 to Astor Place, or the N/R/W to 8th Street/Broadway. Tickets are available at visit http://www.24hourplays.com/, or (646) 502-7453.

Why blog when The New York Times does it for you?

The 24 Hour Plays on Broadway? Here ya go:

http://artsbeat.blogs.nytimes.com/tag/24-hour-plays/

Oops - jumped the gun there...

Apparently, our pals at Playbill.com copied the info about the October 22 show and posted it on their site (which gets a few more hits than ours!!). And tickets aren't even officially on sale yet. So I'm sorry to everyone who tried to get tickets! We'll let you know soon...

The 24 Hour Plays on Broadway: October 22, 2007

Yes, folks, it's that time of year. We're gearing up for another star-studded extravaganza, in the lovely American Airlines Theater. This time out, we'll welcome some first-timers to the fold, including Edie Falco, Jeremy Sisto and Kerry Washington. They'll be joining a crack squad of alumni (see below) to create a staggeringly overqualified talent pool. Tickets are available at www.smarttix.com - get 'em now (last year we sold out a month in advance...)!

The 24 Hour Plays On Broadway
Monday, October 22, 2007

24 celebrities risk their sanity and their reputations in 6 short plays, written and rehearsed in a single day!

Length: 2 hrs 00 min
Intermission: Yes
Seating: Assigned by SmartTix
Seat are assigned by SmartTix based up best availablity at the completion of your order.


Montblanc proudly announces the 7th annual performance of The 24 Hour Plays on Broadway. Six brand new plays will be written, cast, rehearsed and performed at the American Airlines Theatre in a single day, featuring an all-new all-star line up of 24 performers, six writers, six directors and one musical guest. This year's performers will include renowned theatre and film luminaries: Elizabeth Berkley, David Cross, Billy Crudup, Michael Ealy, Edie Falco, Mariska Hargitay, Anthony Mackie, Julianna Margulies, Matthew Lillard, Rosie Perez and Kerry Washington

Proceeds from The 24 Hour Plays on Broadway benefit Working Playground, a not for profit cultural organization, that uses the arts to educate, inspire, and enrich the lives of youth in over 40 underserved New York City Schools. Through a dynamic range of dance performance, documentary and film, music, poetry, theatre and visual arts programs, Working Playground empowers youth to develop the creative and analytic impulses that will serve then as students, professionals and citizens. www.workingplayground.org.

For over 100 years, Montblanc has embraced the traditions of lasting value and exquisite craftsmanship. The company's uncompromising principles of design, style, quality and workmanship have allowed them to create heirloom collections that are passed from generation to generation. The iconic Montblanc Star is a symbol of excellence - the pinnacle of luxury writing instruments, timepieces, jewelry and leather - and the brand has made an enduring commitment to encourage excellence through cultural advancement. This year, Montblanc pays tribute to Hollywood's legendary femme fatale, Marlene Dietrich, whose seductive gaze and incomparable voice made her a luminary of the golden age of film. Montblanc is pleased to partner with the 24 Hour Company and Working Playground, Inc. to bring arts and culture to the city's youth.

The 24 Hour Plays: Old Vic New Voices - New York

The 24 Hour Plays: Old Vic New Voices offers emerging talent an extraordinary chance to test their skills in the ultimate theatrical challenge: The 24 Hour Plays. Since 2005, the program has brought together young professionals in London to perform on the legendary Old Vic stage. In 2007, The 24 Hour Company and the The Old Vic have teamed up once more to bring the concept to New York .

For the US debut, the final team of 40 writers, directors, producers and actors, aged 18-25, will have the unique opportunity to create six original plays for The Atlantic Theater stage, and perform them live after just one day's preparation.

To prepare for the daunting challenge ahead, the group will attend a series of workshops and panel discussions with established industry professionals, including The Old Vic Artistic Director Kevin Spacey, actors Hugh Dancy, Claire Danes, Rachel Dratch, Jonathan Groff, and Aasif Mandvi, and playwrights Warren Leight and Lucy Thurber. The sessions focus on skills crucial for the success of the event, including writing under pressure, vocal projection, speed-learning lines and building confidence and trust.

On July 2 at 8pm, the new company will have a chance to display their many talents on the Atlantic Theater mainstage.

for more information email tina@24hourplays.com.

Thanks for an amazing autumn season!

Thanks to everyone who made these past few months so memorable.

Please visit http://www.workingplayground.org - Working Playground's online auction closes soon!

The 24 Hour Plays on Broadway

In our heads, we're already singing "Twenty-twenty-twenty four hours to go"...but in reality, we've all got a whole weekend to work through before welcoming everyone to the American Airlines Theatre for this, our 6th annual benefit for Working Playground, Inc.

As promised, here's the updated lineup: Performers Jennifer Aniston, Elizabeth Berkley, Erika Christensen, David Cross, Mos Def, Matt Dillon, Rachel Dratch, Michael Ealy, Edie Falco, Gaby Hoffman, Matthew Lillard, Julianna Margulies, Jesse L. Martin, Anna Paquin, Rosie Perez, Sam Rockwell, Paul Rudd, Liev Schreiber, Pablo Schreiber, Wallace Shawn, Fisher Stevens, David Strathairn, Catherine Tate, Nia Vardalos, and Lynn Whitfield will be directed by Miguel Arteta, Andrew McCarthy, Maria Mileaf, Bennett Miller, Ian Morgan and Josie Rourke in works by Adam Bock, Julia Cho, Tina Howe, David Ives, Terrence McNally, and Adam Rapp. This list, as always, is subject to change.

The 24 Hour Plays on Broadway will be performed on Monday, October 23rd at 8pm at the American Airlines Theatre, 227 West 42nd Street. The event is sold out.