14/48: The World's Quickest Theatre Festival

The world’s quickest theatre festival comes to London.

Over one weekend, artists from around the city, country, and world will be invited to come and create fourteen brand-new ten-minute plays from scratch in just forty-eight hours. Each night of the festival, a theme is drawn and playwrights have until the next morning to write a new play, which is then rehearsed and performed the same evening.

After the show, a new theme is drawn and the process repeats again. No scripts in advance. No rehearsals beforehand. Not even pairings. Just trust, risk, caffeine, and collaboration. Since 1997, 14/48 has been bringing radically collaborative theatre to cities around the world. Originating in Seattle, it has grown to feature festivals in Texas, Hollywood, Leicester, Vashon Island, and Wolverhampton. The festival has remained fiercely mobile, community-driven, and joyfully chaotic. In April 2026, 14/48 comes to London for the first time at The Cockpit.