One Night Stand (FILM REVIEW)
One Night Stand: Creating a Play in a Day
Film Review
by Kam Williams
Theater Documentary Chronicles Captivating Musicals Staged in 24 Hours
Anyone who grew up watching The
Little Rascals remembers that some of the best episodes were where the kids attempted
to put on a show, like the time they did Romeo & Juliet, and Buckwheat had
to serve as a last-minute stand-in for Darla as Juliet, much to Alfalfa’s
consternation. Well, if you can appreciate that sort of impromptu entertainment,
then you are likely to enjoy One Night Stand: Creating a Play in a Day.
Co-directed by Trish Dalton and
Elisabeth Sperling, the movie chronicles a Herculean, coordinated effort to
write, cast, compose, rehearse and perform four musicals in less than a day. And
it’s all for a good cause, too, The Exchange, a charity which supports
innovative theater artists.
The movie stars a number of
recognizable stage and screen actors, most notably, Richard Kind, Jesse Tyler
Ferguson, Cheyenne Jackson, Tracie Toms and SNL alumna Rachel Dratch. And it
also prominently features the playwrights and composers operating under
pressure to produce scripts and scores, respectively, with little time to
revise.
They began working at 8 PM and by 8
AM they handed over a quartet of freshly-minted musicals to the directors and
cast members. What ensues is a sort of opening night bedlam, but greatly
amplified, since they only have a few hours to memorize lines, lyrics and
melodies.
Initially, I was admittedly a little
put off by the assorted backstage banter and hysteria, especially since I was
more than a little cynical about the ambitious endeavor’s prospects. Yet, all was
forgiven when the pieces of the puzzle ultimately came together by show time. I
couldn’t believe how polished and professional the final product was.
Rome might not have been built in a day, but One
Night Stand proves that a captivating, Broadway-quality musical can be mounted
in 24 hours. Who knew?
Very Good
(3 stars)
Unrated
Running time: 74 minutes
Distributor: Fathom Events
Studio: Incubation
Films
Special One-Night Event Nationwide:
One Night Stand will
be in theaters on Jan 30, 2013 at 7:30pm local time
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