Larry Owens, Andy Karl & Orfeh, Rachel Dratch and More Bring Humor To THE 24 HOUR PLAYS: VIRAL MONOLOGUES

The 24 Hour Plays: Viral Monologues made us laugh out loud last night with a special series of comedic monologues to benefit Gilda's Club New York City! A top-notch team of writers and actors collaborated from afar to write, rehearse, perform and produce 18 all-new pieces in just 24 hours. The monologues are available through October 24th on IGTV @24hourplays, on The 24 Hour Plays' Facebook and YouTube channels, and at https://24hourplays.com/viral-monologues/.

Elizabeth Marvel kicked things off with "Someone Else's City," written by Wendy MacLeod.

Larry Owens let us know that "I Am Here To Make Friends" in a piece by Kate Willett.

Tracee Chimo Pallero performed "Full Body Slate," written by Talene Monahon.

Frankie J. Alvarez starred in "Cough Syrup," written by Steve Yockey.

Jo Firestone performed "Meet Marie," written by Riane Konc.

Noah Robbins starred in Kristoffer Diaz's "Run. Absolute Data. Not Exaggerating. Run."

Emma Ramos performed "Grace," written by Emmylou Diaz.

Jessica Hecht told us about "The Carpenter" in a piece by Douglas Carter Beane.

Andy Karl & Orfeh starred in "BZZZZ," which featured a book by Rachel Axler with music & lyrics by Matt Schatz.

Anna Suzuki performed "My Kitten Tortoro," written by Alexis Scheer.

Reed Birney performed "This Alone," written by Mario Correa.

Eve Lindley told us "What She Sees" in a piece by Erica Saleh.

Jordan Temple starred in Monique Moses's "Poker Face."

Corin Wells confided that "I Hate This Candlestick" in a piece by Jennifer Kim.

Tim Guinee performed "Permafrost," written by Dan O'Brien.

Jon Rudnitsky performed "Truthful, Helpful, Kind," written by Alex Edelman.

Artemis Pebdani starred in "Tourmaline," written by Jaclyn Backhaus.

Rachel Dratch closed out the evening with "Super Spreader," written by David Lindsay-Abaire.

This week's monologues support Gilda's Club of New York City, a welcoming community of support for cancer patients and their families. Founded in memory of original Saturday Night Live cast member Gilda Radner, who passed away from ovarian cancer, Gilda's Club ensures that no one has to face cancer alone through support groups, educational lectures, healthy lifestyle workshops and social activities.

"We are grateful for this partnership with The 24 Hour Plays to bring comedy and laughter in the spirit of Gilda Radner to benefit our cancer patients and their families through our free cancer support program," said Lily Safani, CEO of Gilda's Club.

On Monday night at 6 PM, actors shared brief orientation-style videos to allow the writers to get to know them better. By 7 PM, writers and actors were paired, and writers got to work on crafting new monologues especially for their assigned actors. Actors received their monologues Tuesday morning at 10 AM, filmed their performances throughout the day, and at 6 PM their videos began to be released to the world, completing the 24-hour cycle. The monologues will be available to view on IGTV and online for four days after their initial airing courtesy of an agreement with Theatre Authority, a nonprofit organization managed by Actors' Equity.

More information for those who would like to support The 24 Hour Plays or attend a live performance in the future is available at https://24hourplays.com.