By Jack Schreiber ’26

RAMSEY, NJ – From Friday, October 13th at 8:00 PM to exactly twenty-four hours later, seventeen students took on a great challenge—to completely write, produce, act, and perform an entirely original ten-minute play based on a given prompt. The students used wit, creativity, and a morsel of sheer luck to perform such a profoundly difficult task. The results were astounding. This article will entail the complete story of the playfest as told by its participants.
Ms. Brooke Walters (née DeBettignies) is the esteemed director of all things theater at Don Bosco Prep. She has run the Playfest on campus for the past four years, and we had the pleasure of sitting down with her to discuss the Playfest.

Q: What is the 24-Hour Playfest, and what is its purpose?
A: The 24-Hour Playfest is a playwriting festival that only lasts one day. Registered students are broken up into teams and given a prompt. Each prompt includes one prop item and one line of dialogue that must be included. For example, one team’s prop might be a frying pan, and the team’s line of dialogue could be, “Goodbye, Mission Control. Thanks for trying.” After 24 hours of writing and rehearsing, everyone’s 10-minute plays are performed for a live audience. This event was created to give students a chance to have fun, flex their creativity, and make new friends … and there’s free food!
Q: What differentiates the 24-Hour Playfest from other performing arts opportunities offered at Bosco?
A: This biggest difference is the overnight aspect. It’s rare to see an overnight theater event as part of a program’s season. Also, many performing arts opportunities require a decent level of commitment to ensure high-quality production value. The 24-Hour Playfest is just for one day. It serves as a fun and flexible option for students who don’t have time to join the Fall Play or Spring Musical but still want to have fun and get creative on campus with their friends.
Q: How was the 24-Hour Playfest different this year from past years?
A: This year, I implemented a new drafting structure for each team’s playwriting process. This greatly affected the quality of plays written by the end of the 24-hour time period. Everyone was able to get more done and give each other more feedback.
Q: What can we expect from the Playfest in the future?
A: With our growing tech theater program, we can utilize the talents of our tech crew students. Next year, we are going to invite tech crew students to join our rehearsal and tech process when we put the show together. This means we will have better lights, sound, set pieces, props, etc. on top of our creative plots and well-written scripts.
Ralph Rossini is a Senior at Bosco and is heavily involved in technical aspects of the Theater Department, having served as assistant producer, prop master, and stage crew. He has been involved in the Playfest every year since its inception. We sat down and talked with him about the Playfest.

Q: Why do you return to the Playfest every year?
A: I find myself returning to do the Playfest because of how unique it is. There is so much creativity and skill that is packed into the 24-hour period. It feels great to be a part of that and see what others can create. There is also this great feeling of bonding you and your friends go through when you work so closely for the twenty-four hours.
Q: How did the Playfest this year compare to past Playfests?
A: This year’s Playfest has grown in production. I feel there was a better understanding of the schedule and technical aspects. This year, we even got our own microphones, which usually doesn’t happen. We have figured out a formula, and I am excited to come back and see it even more polished.
Q: What is one takeaway from the Playfests that you will use throughout your life?
A: Throughout the Playfests, I’ve learned that amazing things can be created in a short time. It is a reminder not to underestimate ourselves or others because the creativity we show on stage can truly impress you.

The 24-Hour Playfest is a unique staple of the Theater Department that is constantly evolving and improving from year to year. It encourages diligence, responsibility, and of course, loads of creativity in all of its participants. From year to year, extraordinary and extraordinary performers go onto the stage despite the time-related challenges. The Playfest is a lesson to us all that we are capable of much more than we think, and that sometimes, twenty-four hours is all you need to create something excellent.