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Teens fill 24 hours with dramatic fundraising!

posted by School of Theatre on Fri, Jun 3, 2011
in Events , School of Theatre , Teen Council

by Ben Hanna, Community Programs Manager

In May, 18 teens from Teen Council gathered at the School of Theatre for a 24-hour fundraising "Dramathon." Yes, you read that right.  Noon to noon, a nonstop theatre extravaganza!  Here’s just a taste of this fundraising excursion of epic proportions:

Saturday, May 21

12pm - Teens sign up for play readings and warm up their bodies and voices in prep for 24 hours of performance.

1:15pm – Teens near the end of The Importance of Being Earnest, with a twist: a cross-gender cast!

3:11pm - Teen Council member Gideon Lazarus performs a monologue from Macbeth, sparking a series of monologue performances from the teens.

5:20pm – Participants delve into the world of one-acts, including works by playwrights Anton Chekhov, John Patrick Shanley, and David Ives.

6:47pm – Students scarf down a pizza dinner in prep for the Chicago sing-a-long.  Peet’s coffee and tea are served, giving everyone a much-needed boost of energy.

9:07pm - Bay Area actress and School of Theatre teaching artist Elena Wright arrives as a special guest to read Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead by Tom Stoppard with the teens. In Elena's words, "One of the hardest reads I've ever done -- three hours of Stoppard cold from nine to midnight!"

 
Sunday, May 22

12:45am – Over 12 hours down, 12 to go.  Students are clad in pajamas, and Christopher Durang’s The Idiots Karamazov has begun. Lots of hysterical laughter all around, perhaps due to the late-night giggles!

2:30am - Lady Gaga’s “Born This Way” is blaring over our sound system, and a five-minute theatrical dance party ensues!

3:07am – Let’s do the time warp again! Eyes are drooping and the second round of Peet’s coffee is served!  A cult classic is in order! Rocky Horror Picture Show is projected on our classroom wall for a read-through and sing-a-long!

6:45am - Martin McDonagh’s The Lieutenant of Inishmore has begun -- for those of you who saw it at Berkeley Rep, you can imagine the dramatic action all throughout the School!

9:03am - Improv games are played to wake-up the crowd.  Education Fellows Candice McDowell and Allison Whorton pump up the energy, leading some intense “dance-offs.”

11:45am - The top three teen fundraisers for the Dramathon are announced and given great Berkeley Rep prizes in appreciation of their hard work!

 
 
Over the course of the evening, teens read 8 full-length plays, 10 one-acts, and 10 monologues as well as participated in 3 sing-a-longs and numerous improv games.  Major kudos to these diehard theatre-lovers who raised over $3,500 for the Berkeley Rep Teen Council's programming next year. 

Weren't able to sponsor a teen but want to help support Teen Council programming?  Donate to the Teen Conference Fund and help send seven teens to represent the youth voice of American theatre at the TCG Conference this June.