Richard Fiske and Sarah Marshall, Dramathon 2011

Paul Oberle

Rick Foucheux, Lee Casey, and Jo Sullivan, Dramathon 2014

Teresa Castracane

Steven Malone, KyoSin Kang, and Christopher Henley, Dramathon 2013

Andrew Propp

Jayme Lawson and Holly Twyford, Dramathon 2013

Andrew Propp

Class Act is an occasional series highlighting theatre education programs in the Washington area. For a complete listing of all that’s available, visit theatreWashington's Education Explorer and find the ideal program for your interests. This week we look at a unique fundraising event from Theatre Lab, putting students and professionals onstage together for a worthy cause.

Writing from personal experience, one of the top theatre events each year is Theatre Lab’s Dramathon. At 10:30 pm on a Friday night in spring, some of the most accomplished actors in the area gather at Theatre J to share the stage with adults and teens who have earned the privilege by raising funds that support scholarships to Theatre Lab’s summer programs. In return for giving underserved youth a transformative experience in the arts, they get to rehearse and perform a world-premiere, ten-minute play written by some of the best of our local playwrights – with some of our best local actors. The result is an evening marked by high spirits, great comedy, and a bit of pathos – and it’s a sheer delight.

To raise the stakes, Theatre Lab gives each playwright a prompt, and just twenty-four hours to complete the work. Playwright Laura Zam explains, “In one evening, you get this broad range of plays that are genius and also a little rough around the edges—because we wrote then in a day! I love the thrill of seeing what these amazing actors do with our words. I love supporting all the other actors, who range from professional to beginner student. And I feel honored to help raise money for these scholarships.”

For playwright Jacqueline Lawton, currently represented by The Wizard of Oz at Adventure Theatre-MTC, this year’s prompt fueled some deep personal reflection. “My prompt was to write about something that had ‘gotten out of hand,’” she explains. “I immediately thought about the last year of my life. I had been freelancing, traveling all over the country, and my mattress was old and worn. Each time I returned home, all I wanted was to sleep, spend time with friends, see theatre, and write. At the same time, I desperately wanted something new and different. Suddenly, my wish came true. I received an offer to teach at UNC Chapel Hill and serve as dramaturg for PlayMakers Rep. But I wasn’t ready for it. I mean, I knew all of the steps that I had to take, but even then things didn’t go as planned. My life had gotten away from me and it was exhilarating. I knew that had to write about that.”

Both writers embrace the spirit of camaraderie inherent in the Dramathon experience. “You’re in a company of brilliant and talented playwrights,” Lawton explains. “You get to create a lead for some of DC’s finest actors. And it’s all to raise money for students to attend summer camp. It’s a win-win all around!” Zam echoes the sentiment, “I love this collaboration with other playwrights, plus actors, directors and Theater Lab staff! I mostly create one-person plays that I perform myself. So this kind of collaboration is not the norm for me.”

Actor Christopher Henley is a veteran of the program and has performed in Dramathon plays by several area writers. “To be totally truthful,” he says “there is usually a point on the day of the Dramathon when I think about being out so late – you tend to rise early with two-year-olds in the house, don't you know. [I] think about the stress of doing something rehearsed only once, and regret having said yes. Then, the night of, things tend to come together in a really satisfying way and I bounce home extremely grateful for the experience.” A favorite memory is as an audience member, after finishing his onstage duties. “[It was a play] written by Ari Roth,” Henley remembers. “It featured Jennifer Mendenhall as an artistic director at a staff meeting dealing with a public relations challenge . . . It was so trenchant, and so wickedly funny.”

Last year, Theatre Lab published its first anthology of Dramathon plays, giving them a boost toward further production. “None of my experiences have been throwaway skits,” Henley notes. “Each could easily be the germ of something more, even if of an example of that vanishing beast, the short-form theatre piece.”

The line-up for this year’s Dramathon is an impressive one, as usual. Taking the stage will be actors Gabriela Fernandez-Coffey, Christopher Henley, Nanna Ingvarsson, Buzz Mauro, Michael Russotto, Deidra LaWan Starnes, Holly Twyford, and MaryBeth Wise. They’ll be performing works by me, Bob Bartlett, Renee Calarco, Ally Currin, Jacqueline Lawton, Elizabeth Pringle, Mary Hall Surface, and Laura Zam.

Explore Theatre Lab’s extensive course listings for adults and youth, and don’t miss the Dramathon on Friday, May 15.

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