241
July 11, 2003

20 Acts in 60 Minutes

Instead of the usual "each week we choose a theme, and bring you 3 or 4 stories on that theme" business, we throw all that away and bring you 20 stories—yes, 20—in 60 minutes.

Tomi Um

Inspiration for this week's show came from the Neo-Futurists, whose long-running Chicago show promises 30 plays in 60 minutes every single weekend. 

Act One

Don't I Know You

Contributor Starlee Kine talks to actor Tate Donovan about the day he felt he was being exactly the kind of celebrity he'd wanted to be: when suddenly, he was approached by a kid with a camera.
Act Nine

Of Dogs and Men

Elaine Boehm overhears a couple in her pet shop, trying to choose a dog collar.
Act Ten

Act Ten

A two minute play called “Title,” written and performed by Greg Allen and Heather Riordan of the Chicago group, The Neo-Futurists. It’s part of their long-running show "Too Much Light Makes the Baby Go Blind: 30 Plays in 60 Minutes."

Act Twelve

To Tell the Truth

Brent Runyon reports from the kids' section at the public library.
Act Thirteen

More Lies

Catherine and John, two college undergrads, do a babysitting gig together. After the kids are asleep and the two of them get hungry, John doesn't think they should eat any of the food in the house; they settle on a compromise.
Act Eighteen

Party Talk

Author Chuck Klosterman and his friends make a party game out of comparing television shows to rock bands. They call it "Monkees Equals Monkees."
Act Nineteen

The Hard Life at the Top

Every year 1,200 new army cadets arrive at West Point. Once they say a single sentence correctly, they can go to their barracks. But not until then. David Lipsky reports. He's the author of Absolutely American.