On Friday, March 8, while others left school in the afternoon for a relaxing weekend, 37 Middleton High School (MHS) theatre students came together to begin writing the show that they were set to perform in just over 24 hours. 

“One Night Only” has been an annual MHS Theatre production for three years. The show, which mimics “Saturday Night Live,” is a comedy medley created entirely by students. This year, it ran for an hour and a half and featured sketches, music and the show’s most surprising sensation: the crowns.

Students had various opportunities to participate in the show’s production. Under the direction of Isa Killian (10) and Aydin Rosas (11), participants could be writers, actors or members of the stage crew. 

MHS alum and professional screenwriter Charlotte Martin met virtually with writers on Tuesday and Thursday of the week leading up to the performance to instruct about the elements of comedy and assist in developing ideas. After learning from Martin, the students took the reins. At 4 p.m. on that Friday, writers began their work; by Saturday night, the actors had taken their final bows.

Creating a show in such little time was a stressful yet lasting learning experience for everyone involved. 

“The day of [the performance] was really when the pressure hit on, and it was just a grind for twelve hours straight,” Rosas said.

On Saturday, some students felt that accomplishing their tasks with mere hours left to spare was impossible, but the success of “One Night Only” proved that miracles can occur with focus and dedication. 

“I really enjoy how we were able to perform quite well after [the] few days that we had to practice,” Santiago Picasso (11) said. “It really puts into perspective what someone can accomplish if they just put their mind to it.”

According to Rosas, people not involved in theatre may not realize the layers of work that developing a sketch requires. 

“You have to first figure out how to translate the writing into positioning, and then that positioning has to have all those technical lighting and sound elements added to it,” he said. “And then you have to practice all of that before the show.”

Once the writing was complete, “One Night Only” included ten comedy sketches and an opening monologue from its directors. Students performed the lines from memory, improvising when something went wrong. Sketches told stories of a tic-tac-toe world championship, a mad scientist’s clone machine, a group therapy session and more.

The technical elements truly brought the show to life. Sound effects and light cues enhanced the comedy while props, costumes and sets made sketches bold and immersive.

Many students who performed are frequent attendees of Teens With Improv Games (T.W.I.Gs.), an inclusive acting group that meets during ASR and supports students in growing their confidence onstage. This training prepares them for the quick thinking needed to act in “One Night Only.”

“One Night Only” also featured musical guests Conley Dohse (12) and Thomas Strickland, an MHS graduate, who collectively go by the stage name “UAP”. The duo performed two acts within the show, each featuring two high-energy rap songs.

When audience members arrived at the Black Box on Saturday night, they each found a paper Burger King crown on their chair. Guests filed in and wore their crowns, excitedly awaiting the joke’s punchline. The twist? There wasn’t one.

Despite the lack of a punchline, the utter nonsense of these crowns, which advertised “Kung Fu Panda 4,” caught on quickly. Audience members took pictures in their crowns and many brought them home at the end of the night.

However, the crowns’ true takeoff did not occur until the Fine Arts Week revival of “One Night Only,” fittingly renamed “One Morning Only.” Hundreds of crowns remained after filling every Black Box chair. Participants passed out leftovers to students in the halls and soon, MHS was brimming with paper Burger King crowns.

“It was incredible, really – everyone who watched the show had a crown on, but so did all these random kids,” Remi Coleman (10) said.

It all began when Linus Ballard (11), who acted in the production, made a Burger King run before the show on Saturday. When he saw paper crowns distributed with the purchase of a meal, inspiration struck. 

Ballard captured the spirit of “One Night Only” by adapting to new opportunities and bringing the crowns back to the directors. He said, “I saw a need and I fulfilled it. I knew people would enjoy it, so why not?”

“One Night Only” was a major success for both participants and audience members. Though stressful at times, students reflected fondly on the experience.

 “I think you’d have to […]  restrain me from doing it again because [it’s] such a fun process,” Rosas said.

Thanks to these students’ leaps of faith, “One Night Only” and the Burger King crowns have become a night – and day – for MHS to remember.