Wherein we spotlight a show playing in the 2016 Improvised Play Festival, happening Thursday April 14 – Saturday April 16! Get your tickets here!
Last year at The Improvised Play Festival, Jon Bolden premiered “The Half-Written Play”. The name explains it pretty well: the first act of a play is written before the show and then is read onstage by a group of improvisors who have no idea what the script contains. When the actors finish reading the script, they improvise what comes next.
Last year’s show was a collaboration with Physical Plant Theater playwright Steve Moore. This year’s play is written by local playwright and improvisor Addison Billingsley.
We asked Jon Bolden (he’s the director, by the way) “hey, what’s up with this show?” and here’s what he had to say:
1) What inspired “The Half-Written Play”?
I’ve always loved the idea of having actors thrusted into a world that’s been thought-out and developed and seeing them discover their way through it. It’s also fun to be so familiar with a script and see what people do with it having only been exposed to it for about 20 minutes.
2) Why did you want to bring it back?
Last year’s show was a rewarding experience on and off stage and so many people asked me if it was going to happen again. I felt like it had to be done!
3) What is most exciting about this year’s performance of “The Half-Written Play”?
I’m most excited about working with people that I love but rarely get to work closely with and having some members from ColdTowne Theatre and The Institution Theater as a part of The Hideout’s festival. We love including as much of the Austin community as possible.
“The Half-Written Play”: Thursday April 14 at 10pm. Get your tickets here!
Cast: Amy Averett, Byron Brown, Carlos LaRotta, Cené Hale, Chuy Zarate, and Courtney Hopkin
