Actor Sally Wingert, shown during rehearsals last winter for "A Little Night Music" at Theater Latte Da, is one of the headliners of "The 24-Hour Musicals." (photo by Jeff Wheeler/Star Tribune)
They're going to need a lot of coffee.
Four creative teams, comprising more than 40 artists, are gearing up for the Twin Cities' first-ever "24 Hour Musicals."
Writers and composers will team up with directors and actors -- including such A-listers as Sally Wingert, Michelle Barber, Sasha Andreev, Cat Brindisi and Warren C. Bowles -- to create and present a musical within the space of a calendar day, starting at 7:30 p.m. Sunday.
You can see the results at 7:30 p.m. Monday at Chanhassen Dinner Theatres, which is hosting the event as a benefit for the theater program at the University of Minnesota Duluth.
UMD is the alma mater of performer Brindisi and composer David Darrow, who will be part of one of the teams.
Other composers include Kasano Mwanza, a regular on the Chanhassen stage, and singer-songwriter Becky Shaheen while the directors include Park Square leader Flordelino Lagundino and UMD professor William Payne. There also will be choreography by Kelly Foster Warder and Rebecca Katz Harwood plus a live band led by music supervisor Zac Zinger.
The concept was launched in 1995 by theater artists who wanted to create their own work and present it on Mondays, a day on which playhouses are usually dark. What began as a lark has become an institution, with productions and performances in New York, across the nation and the world.
The Twin Cities have twice played host to "The 24 Hour Plays," which uses a similar template, but this is the first time for musicals.
The shows raise money for charity even as they push theater artists to their sleep-deprived limits.
Tickets to the benefit performance are $35, with upgraded dinner packages available. Call 952-934-1525 or 800-362-3515 or go to ChanhassenDT.com for more information.
