A mad dash to create a play in just one day
“There is no time to be scared, or anything,” says Blaire Smith. “It is always a whirlwind, one hundred percent. It is a beautiful combination of urgency and collaboration with different artists, and creativity. There is such an energy in the room.”
Smith is talking about the Double Shot Theater Festival, a kind of theatrical 100-meter dash. For roughly 20 years (festival creator Bryan Willis isn’t quite sure when it all got started), Double Shot has been assembling directors, actors, and playwrights to complete the herculean task of writing, memorizing, rehearsing, lighting, costuming, and eventually performing 10-minute plays, all in about 24 hours.
On Friday, actors are paired with a director and a playwright; that night, at 7 p.m., the playwright is given a prompt (last year, it was to include music), and has until 9 a,m. Saturday morning, to turn in a finished play. That evening, all of the finished plays are performed for a crowd, whether or not they’ve had the time to catch their breath.
Having spent her whole life in theatre, both as an actor and director, among other things, Smith has naturally taken part in a few Double Shots. When Double Shot once again takes over the Roosevelt Room in the Tacoma Armory, this April, Smith will be participating again. For many actors, just performing your standard play, with plenty of rehearsal time, is enough of an adrenaline rush. What would compel an actor to walk a tightrope like Double Shot?
“It’s a quick way to be creative, if you will, because it doesn’t have the months-long process that drags on, where maybe you’re ready for an audience, but you still have to wait a while,” Smith says. “This doesn’t give you time to get in your head about things. If you’re a busy artist, or you have other things happening, or you’re part of other processes, or have a full-time job in different industries — it’s a great, quick way to be creative, and to meet and network with other local artists.”
“We just signed Tony & Pulitzer-winning David Auburn to write one of our five Double Shot plays at Tacoma Arts Live! Charlotte Tiencken (Vashon Repertory Theatre) will be directing the premiere of Auburn’s new play.” Willis said. Tiencken is a Double Shot veteran and founding board member of Northwest Playwright Alliiance.
And what’s the hardest part?
“Telling a story that is being born right in front of you, creating these characters that didn’t exist five hours ago, and bringing them to life in a way that does them justice, and that the audience will understand,” says Smith. “With that comes the memorization of it all. Most times, the writers are kind and don’t give giant monologues, but sometimes there are some moments where you’re like, ‘Oh, this is a lot of text, and it’s rich and beautiful, and how do I do it justice in a way that gets the story across?’
“So, there’s an element of bravery that goes into being an actor in this kind of creation, and under this kind of pressure,” Smith continues. “These plays that these artists are writing, they’re not just being written and performed — they’re being born right in front of the audience. … It’s a beautiful snapshot of this moment in time that the audience gets to share, and that will never happen again.”
Most overnight festivals, like Double Shot, are framed as competitions of some sort, where the naturally stressful situation is made even more acute with the addition of prizes and bragging rights. Double Shot is not a competition, as Willis is quick to point out: a priority is placed on creating the best possible plays, with participants getting paid a small, but symbolically important, honorarium of $50 for their efforts.
Other festivals in this vein will also add a second all-nighter, chasing that loopy, sleep-deprived delirium, which Willis believes is antithetical to the creative process. With Double Shot, there will be a second performance as a Sunday matinee, but this will just be a chance for the creative teams to hone their plays and hopefully deliver a tighter and more satisfying production.
Some of these plays find a second life after the festival is over, so what you see at Double Shot could be the beginnings of the next Great American Play. Or, as Smith says, this could be the kind of ephemeral artistic experience that theatre so uniquely provides — what you see will never be seen again.
WHAT:
Double Shot Theater Festival
WHEN:
7:30 p.m. Saturday, April 18, and 3 p.m. Sunday, April 19
WHERE:
Tacoma Armory, 1001 Yakima Ave, Tacoma
COST:
$22
LEARN MORE:
tacomaartslive.org
(253) 346-1721