Local residents have a role in Lewis University's Heritage Theatre Company 24-Hour Theatre Festival

Lewis University's Heritage Theatre Company (HTC) is proud to host a "24 Hour Theatre Festival a.k.a. Black Box Blowout" on Friday and Saturday, March 14 and 15. The new Studio Theatre, nicknamed the "black box," is a theater with a very simple design, which makes it an extremely flexible space. As its name would suggest, this kind of theatre is designed kind of like a box. The space which contains the theatre is square and painted black, because black is a neutral color which will not clash with costumes, sets, and lighting. The floor is flat and open, allowing designers to arrange seating however they desire. The great thing about a black box space is that it can be anything anyone wishes to imagine. A black box theatre is capable of endless new configurations, allowing artists to exercise their creativity, which can be especially valuable in the case of experimental performances, like a "24 Hour Theatre Festival." In January, HTC started seeking playwrights, directors, actors, stage managers, technicians and front-of-house staff for a weekend long experience of creating original live theatre. They have 1 day - 1,440 minutes - 86,400 seconds - for total play creation. They will be given a theme, a bag of theatrical supplies and one chance at glory. The "24 Hour Theatre Festival" will begin at 7 pm on Friday, March 14, 2014 and conclude with a free performance on Saturday, March 15, 2014 at 7:30 pm. HTC board members and Lewis alumni, Chad Tallon '08 of Essex, Jo Slowik '88, Andrew Nelsen '04 both of Joliet and Matt Dutton '13 of Chicago are the festival leaders. Lewis alumni participating in the event include: Sean Barber '11 of Aurora, Christopher Hueg '11 of Roseville, MN, Ashley Daun '12 of New Lenox, Tim Karkowski '07 of Channahon, and Sandy Bednarz '12 of Woodridge. Current Lewis students participating in the festival include: Justin Anderson of Orland Park, Mary Bradley of Palos Heights, Matthew Carlson and Erika Young both from Lockport, Brendan Casey and Sylmarie Soto both from Joliet, Allie DiMiele of New Lenox, Austin Hill of Naperville, Stephanie Lipinski of Oak Forest, Bryan Lochner of Essex, Annie Martello of Morris, Kate O'Neil of Yorkville, Katy Papineau of Kankakee, Nicole and Briana Reidy of Darien, Jessie Richey of McHenry, Tyler Senjanin of Evergreen Park, Rachel Tau of Wood Dale, and Sabrina Parr of Plainfield. To view these students click here: http://lewisu.meritpages.com/achievements/Local-residents-have-a-role-in-Lewis-University-s-Heritage-Theatre-Company-24-Hour-Theatre-Festival/21035