Before last weekend, I was unaware of Roanoke’s rich railway history (and much of its downtown really), and I remarked to a friend how enthralled by transcontinental rail I remain, while ironically, the Railroad Convention was in town and in throngs at the Pine Room Pub, located in the remarkable and vast Hotel Roanoke. More to the point, I was also unaware of just how thriving and ensconced Roanoke’s theater scene is.

I was invited to participate in their 24-hr theater, or, as Hollins University’s MFA Playwriting Lab and Mill Mountain Theatre call it, “Overnight Sensations”. The premise isn’t new, but the ride was new to me: At 8 p.m. Friday night, the actors were randomly assembled into teams. Next the playwrights, directors, genres, themes and places were each pulled from a hat and attributed respectively. The playwrights had until 8 a.m. to write a 10-minute play incorporating all the elements and actors. From 8-10 a.m. Saturday morning the director and writer met for notes and casting. The writer then had two more hours for edits. At noon the actors and director met to rehearse until roughly 6 or 7 p.m. At 8 p.m. the show began and the six new plays were performed.

It was a really interesting exercise for someone like me, who can be riddled with perfectionist tendencies. I was also blissfully ignorant, as here I had a complete lack of preconceived notions. It really was just about the work and, in drastically short order, to tell as compelling and well drawn a story as possible. Each piece had merit in its own right and each had well-crafted moments and opportunities for the actors and writers to shine. I admit head-scratching when only a couple of the plays were within the 10-minute time limit, but I’m literal minded in many ways, and if the writers’ exercise is in being pithy…yet here I say this knowing full well I’m over my word-count! Regardless, we played to a handsome audience, and a good time was had by all.