We’ve been producing 14/48: The World’s Quickest Theater Festival since 1997 in venues all around Seattle. And now The 14/48 Projects has expanded our reach with festivals in the UK, Hollywood, CA and Austin, TX.

Here’s how 14/48 works: 

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Early Thursday night: 

After tapping the ceremonial 14/48 keg, all the participants choose a theme by completing this sentence: “Theatre would be a lot more interesting if there were seven ten-minute plays about _______.” One answer is chosen at random and that becomes the theme for the following evening. Seven terrified, excited, caffeinated writers must submit a brand new 10-minute play based on the theme by 8am Friday morning. 

Friday morning:

Seven directors gather and each randomly draws one play. Thirty minutes later, the directors blindly choose actors’ names on slips of paper to cast the show. 

That day: 

The band shows up to provide music and sound, designers create all technical aspects of each show as the directors and their casts rehearse all day. Each play gets 20 minutes of tech rehearsal.

Friday evening: 

The seven plays have their World Premiere at 7pm and Final Performance at 9:30pm. The 7pm audience provides the theme for Saturday’s show via a random drawing and the seven writers go home to start the process all over again to culminate with seven brand new scripts for Saturday evening at 7pm and 9:30pm, thus creating 14 plays in 48 hours.