Cathedral Catholic High School students will showcase their original plays at the Playwrights’ Festival at 7 p.m. in the Guadalupe Center on Jan. 30.

“[The plays] are all student written, student directed, student produced and student everything,” Belle Hilton ’16 said.

The Playwrights’ Festival is a student-run event, which enables students to share their creative endeavors with each other. Throughout the entire process of preparing and putting on their plays, students also become familiar with the play business.

“My favorite part is when we finally get to present what we have done,” former participant William Li ’16 said. “I also enjoy being a part of interesting and creative plays that are written by my talented peers.”

Most of the students participating typically boast a background in performing arts at CCHS, whether that is through drama classes or participation in school productions. However, any student interested in participating is welcome to submit a play.

Students could choose to showcase plays they have written previously, or they can choose to write a play specifically for the festival.  Some students are inspired by their peers, others by events in their lives when they begin scripting their plays.

“I like hearing all the brainstorms [of the plays],” Kaitlyn Walsh ‘16, an active member in the drama department, said. “Sometimes they are ridiculous, but it is usually a lot of fun.”

After the students write a play, they submit it to CCHS administration for approval. Once the plays are approved, production planning begins.

The playwright chooses peers to serve as actors. Then, he or she faces the challenge of directing, rehearsing, and making the production the best it can be in a limited amount of time.

“My favorite part [of the the Playwrights’ Festival] was how fast it takes to prepare,” Henry Pedersen ’17, a participant in last year’s festival, said.  “It takes one to two weeks to prepare compared to three months [for a regular production of a play].”

Since the plays are original and unique to the playwright, people can expect a variety of storylines. There are a plethora of styles as the students express their works in their own way.  Plays vary from a light-hearted comedies to commentary on more serious topics.

“[Overall, the Playwrights’ Festival] is spontaneous,” Pedersen said.

Admission is free.