THE 24 HOUR PLAYS To Stage Digital Show Supporting The WGA Strike

Tonight, Tuesday, May 23rd, the 24 Hour Plays will present a special edition of The 24 Hour Plays: Viral Monologues in solidarity with the Writers Guild of America, who have been on strike since May 2. The show features a wide roster of striking writers including Sofya Levitsky-Weitz, Laura Jacqmin, J. Holtham, Dylan Guerra, Lily Houghton, christopher oscar peña, Jon Caren, Brett Neveu and Micharne Cloughley, as well as actors including Danny Pudi, Hamish Linklater, Alysia Reiner, Chris Murray, Kathryn Gallagher, Abubakr Ali, Sophie Zucker, Tara Pacheco, Zack Calderon, and Lyndsy Fonseca.

The 24 Hour Plays: Viral Monologues debuted March 17, 2020 and have been viewed over six million times worldwide. The critically-acclaimed series ("Wholly addictive and maybe even essential." - The New York Times' Ben Brantley) features new virtual theater pieces written, staged, filmed and published in 24 hours. Beginning at 7 PM ET, brand new plays will be released one every 15 minutes on The 24 Hour Plays Instagram and YouTube accounts.

"The 24 Hour Plays show up for artists at the outset of their careers and never stop showing up. For many of us, it's the longest relationship in our writing lives - and the most supportive, even as many of us have transitioned into writing primarily for television," said WGA strike captain Laura Jacqmin (Get Shorty, Grace and Frankie). "Almost as soon as the WGA went on strike, The 24 Hour Plays came through yet again to highlight our work and our struggle."

"The 24 Hour Plays stand in complete and unequivocal solidarity with members of the Writers Guild of America" said artistic director Mark Armstrong and managing director Madelyn Paquette in a statement. "We will do so for as long as it takes for writers (including our most cherished colleagues) to receive the fair contract they deserve. In our field, the American theater, playwrights have been the writers who've created, produced and staffed streaming shows that ushered in the massive explosion in television viewership and quality - and made studio executives rich. It is past time for them to receive the increased compensation, improved benefits and better working conditions they deserve."

Michael Galligan joins as lead editor for The 24 Hour Plays: Viral Monologues, which are produced by Serena Berman, Jake Beckhard and Mark Armstrong.

The 24 Hour Plays: Viral Monologues are free to view and donations are being directed to the Entertainment Community Fund. 

The Entertainment Community Fund is a national human services organization with a unique understanding of the challenges involved in a life in the arts. As always, we offer a broad spectrum of programs, workshops, support groups, online resources and emergency financial assistance to support the essential needs of all who work in performing arts and entertainment. Administered through our offices in New York, Chicago and Los Angeles, our emergency financial assistance program provides temporary financial assistance (in the form of grants, not loans) to those with documented financial need (eligibility guidelines for need and work history/earning must remain as outlined on our website). Emergency financial assistance is available for people who are unable to pay their immediate basic living expenses (housing, food, utility bills or health care). More information and emergency financial assistance applications can be found at entertainmentcommunity.org/gethelp

ABOUT THE 24 HOUR PLAYS

The 24 Hour Plays (est. 1995, Mark Armstrong, Artistic Director; Madelyn Paquette, Managing Director) bring together creative communities to produce plays and musicals written, rehearsed and performed in 24 hours. Through our radically-present approach to theater, we make work that responds immediately to the world around us, builds communities and generates new artistic partnerships. Our events include The 24 Hour Plays on Broadway and The 24 Hour Musicals, as well as productions from London to Los Angeles, Dublin to Minneapolis, Finland to Mexico and more. Since March 2020, The 24 Hour Plays: Viral Monologues have generated over 600 new free-to-view theater pieces featuring over 1000 artists that have been viewed millions of times and are archived in the Library of Congress.

Each summer, we bring together early-career actors, directors, playwrights, producers and composers for a free professional intensive culminating in their own production of The 24 Hour Plays in an off-Broadway theater. Over eleven years, The 24 Hour Plays: Nationals have introduced audiences and collaborators to a generation of artists changing the game in theater, television and film. The 24 Hour Plays are an enduring New York City institution, while licensed affiliates and partners produce The 24 Hour Plays and Musicals in theaters and schools worldwide, impacting everyone from celebrities to students.

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