Tucson playwrights race the clock at 24/7 Play Festival
Scoundrel & Scamp Theatre's 24/7 Playwright Festival challenges seven Tucson writers to create a full play overnight, premiering Saturday at the Historic Y.
Seven Tucson playwrights will have just one prompt, one night and eight hours of writing to turn nothing into a full production for Scoundrel and Scamp Theatre's 24/7 Playwright Festival, returning to the Historic Y on Saturday.
The festival pushes writers and actors to unlock their creativity under pressure, resulting in a play that even the writers won't know the shape of until showtime.
On Friday night, playwrights will collaborate to create a play from a prompt given to them by the theatre's co-artistic and managing directors, Annika Maher and Zach Austin.
The prompt could be a line, phrase, genre, prop or situation.
Everyone starts working at 8 p.m. and has until 4 a.m. to write a 10-minute play. The morning of the show, actors, stage management and directors get to work putting the production together.
"It is all the really wonderful things about the creative process, just condensed down into 12 hours," Maher said. "I really love that we're creating a space where we're able to create brand new work in just two days, in 24 hours, basically, and have our community be involved."
Scoundrel and Scamp is an award-winning theatre company founded in 2016. It's known for creating immersive, imaginative experiences for audiences of all ages. Maher, lead producer, has been with Scoundrel and Scamp for four years; she and co-artistic director Austin have been in charge of the festival since 2025.
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The festival was established in 2023 after Maher and Austin noticed similar events happening around the country and believed the Tucson community would love one of its own.
"We loved the idea of bringing the community together in a collaborative way," Maher said.
The festival kicks off the theatre's season, bringing the Tucson community together for a night of celebration.
"From a personal aspect, I love to see everyone get together and form friendships," Maher said. "You see everyone making these really wonderful connections."
While this show is intended for audience members 18 and up, the theatre brings diverse stories to life year-round, creating immersive, imaginative experiences for all ages. The nonprofit also runs education programs for youths ages 8 to 18.
Scoundrel and Scamp is open to anyone who has a passion for theatre, including writers, directors, actors and audience members, providing a safe place for Tucsonans to participate in the performing arts.
From prompt to script to full show in one night, the results can range from comedy to drama. In past years, a warthog mask inspired a comedic story about a jazz musician who turns into a wild boar, while another year's play was a serious drama exploring grief.
"I would say it is like a sprint. Your brain has to be going a mile a minute, I think with that, you find some really creative ideas when you don't have a lot of time to ponder," Maher said of the show. "It really pushes you to just move with your artistic intentions quickly and trust yourself."
Showtimes Saturday are at 7 p.m. and 9 p.m., with tickets available online.
Emma Diaz is a University of Arizona alum and freelance journalist based in Tucson.
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