Most authors spend years composing their novels, and most actors and directors labor for months creating a film; on Febru­ary 24, Colgate students completed the entire creative process for three skits in just 24 hours. For the 24 Hour Burn, writers start­ed drafting their sketches at 8:00 p.m. Friday night and continued throughout the night, finishing their works at 8:00 a.m. the next day. At that point, the actors and directors took over the pieces and spent the day experimenting with and rehearsing their scripts. Satur­day night, the audience got to see what these students had produced over the course of a day.

Masque and Triangle, led by junior Coco Vonnegut and sophomore Kristen Friberger, organized the Burn, which this semester consisted of three skits. First was “Emu Oil,” written by first-year Michelle Cohen and directed by junior Halley Gold­man. The sketch centered on a journalist, played by junior Nadya Greenberg, and her interview with a Southern woman, played by first-year Olivia Gamble. As the reporter questioned this woman about her emu, a role played by sophomore Pablo Sasso, their differences emerged, while the emu continued to speak without being understood. This skit opened the night with humor – as Sasso sang “Give Peace a Chance” and intended to create an Emu Liberation Brigade – and concluded with the emu’s voice finally being heard.

“Public Transportation” followed, a deep and complex script by junior Xavia Publius, directed by junior Olivia Bioni. After a brief introduction, first-year Josh Paul’s character, a transgender youth, ventures around the subway and encounters a homeless man (played by sophomore Mary Rose Devine) who steals his wallet, a police of­ficer (played by sophomore Elena Kalmus) who does not believe his story and a seemingly insane woman, Ursula (played by Coco Von­negut). As the tale continues, the main character realizes that Ursula understands him and he returns the help she offers him by saving her from living in “Sanctuaria,” her sanctuary under the subway.

The performances culminated in sophomore Sam Flood’s play “Legacies,” which senior Darius Robinson directed. Adding a twist to the creation story, this sketch showed Adam and Eve, played by senior Alex Crawford and Friberg­er, respectively, in the Garden of Eden, and it poked fun at certain questionable moments. The skit had Adam stating that loving the animals did not mean bestiality occurred, and he termed Eve the world’s first dominatrix. The story also brought the snake into the scene, with Devine in that role. As Adam and Eve realize their lack of clothes, the night drew to a close, ending the Burn as it had begun: with laughter.

While Friberger and Vonnegut, when introducing the perfor­mances, jokingly said that lines were memorized “theoretically,” a lot of effort did enter these sketches, and that was evident. Even though works of literature and theater tend to take ages to complete and perform for an audience, these Colgate students demonstrated how much creativity can be achieved in a day.

With their auditions for the Fringe Festival coming up soon, Masque and Triangle will continue their theatrical events for the students at Colgate to participate in and enjoy, whether it be after weeks of careful practice or just in one day.

Contact Bridget Sheppard at [email protected].