One Acts, the latest production by Palo Alto High School’s theater department, will play at 7:30 p.m. from April 2 to 4 at the Haymarket Theater.

One Acts features eight student-run shows, and for the first time at Paly each show was assigned both a director and a team for design and production.

“Each show has scenic, sound, lighting, costume/makeup and props designers,” senior Thespian President and Student Technical Director Ethan Cohen said.

The theater department hopes this new feature of One Acts will give students involved in its program more experience with all aspects of a theater production.

“Each show also has a small budget to spend on their tech,” Cohen said. “This way we can give more students more experience with designing a show and also to show people, especially underclassmen, how the process of designing and putting a show together really happens.”

Senior Leah Bleich, who plays Ruth in the One Act entitled “The Homecoming,” believes the level of student involvement is one of the best part of One Acts.

“One Acts are great because it’s a phenomenal chance for the students to get a chance to be involved with an aspect of show production that they’ve never experienced before,” Bleich said. “It’s also a pretty casual production process, which allows all kinds of people to get involved in theatre that would never have thought to before.”

Over 60 students are involved in the production of One Acts, according to senior Bolton Bailey, the producer of One Acts. Bailey believes participation in this theater event allows students to find their own independence within the theater arts.

“One Acts is an opportunity for students to get performance art experience autonomously and with their peers,” Bailey said.

Students are encouraged to attend One Acts, which the theater department promises will be an engaging event.

“It’s just really cool to see people do things that you never expected them to be able to do,” Cohen said.