51Թ

Students burn both ends of candle for theater

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A love of theater, a healthy dose of stamina, and a strong desire to see a project to a successful conclusion were on display recently during the 24-Hour Burn at 51Թ.

The “burn” involves the entire theatrical process crunched into a 24-hour period, with writing, rehearsing, directing, and acting all happening at Donovan’s Pub.

This latest venture of the Masque and Triangle theater group involved about 30 students, according to Molly Thrailkill ’09. It started at 8 p.m. Oct. 10 and ended with several plays performed live at 8 p.m. Oct. 11.

Two students – Mark Florian ’09 and Phuong Nam Kieu ’11 – videotaped the exhaustive process, and Florian created a clip that shows the progression from energetic writing sessions to catnaps on pub benches to full rehearsals to pre-performance jitters to a live show.

“It’s definitely an interesting process to do it in such a short period of time,” says writer Alexandra Magnaud ’12. “I’m having a good time already. All the coffee out there helps.”

At one point in the early, early hours, writer Allie Geiger ’09 captures the mood: “I feel like my eyes are filled with caulk.”

But the show must go on. And it did, 24 hours later. Watch the video to see the students in action.