On November 1 and 2, The Palace Theatre housed the production of “Once Upon a Cabaret” directed by junior Lauren Bender, sophomore Meredith Clark, and seniors Madeline Donovan and Robbie Nicholas. The tradition of a bi-annual Cabaret was started seven years ago by alumni Tessa Drake ’10, Laura McDonald ’10 and Lindsey Simpson ’10 and has been carried on throughout the years by enthusiastic music lovers to the delight of the Colgate student body. This semester’s show was a fun and informal event where members of the audience frequently called out to their friends in the production, cheering them on before each musical number.

To keep things interesting, every Cabaret performed over the years has a different theme that is reflected in the choice of musical numbers. “Once Upon a Cabaret,” as you may guess by the title, had a magical storybook theme and included songs from Disney movies, the television series “Glee” and various musicals. Almost half of the songs chosen were from beloved Disney classics like “Hercules,” “Aladdin” and “Beauty and the Beast,” which invoked a fond childhood nostalgia for many audience members. Comprised of 23 musical numbers, the performance was a little over an hour long, but was so entertaining that the audience was sad to see it come to an end. The cast consisted of 25 extremely talented students who sang well collectively as well as individually, and were supported throughout the performance by a five-piece band. The musical numbers chosen included solo pieces and group numbers as well as opening and closing songs performed by the full cast. Everyone had their moment in the spotlight, highlighting the incredible talents of each member of the ensemble.

The Cabaret began with “Aquarius/Let The Sun Shine In” from the musical “Hair,” an uplifting number about harmony and understanding performed by the full cast. This was followed by “Notice Me Horton” from the musical “Seussical,” “Journey To The Past” from the movie “Anastasia” and “Strangers Like Me” from Disney’s “Tarzan.” The first “Glee” song performed was a medley of Adele songs “Rumor Has It” and “Someone Like You” featuring sophomore soloist Jennifer Shelton. This proved to be one of the best numbers in the Cabaret with great choreography, excellent back up vocals and Shelton’s explosive voice leaving the audience in awe of the amount of raw talent on the stage. “Temp & The Receptionist” from the musical theater writing team Kooman and Dimond was another standout number featuring Bender and senior Joshua Jackson, who acted out a hilarious office romance. Other notable songs included “Colors Of The Wind” from “Pocahontas,” “I’ll Make A Man Out Of You” from “Mulan,” “Let Me Be Your Star” from the show “Smash” and “Too Tired” from the musical “High Fidelity.”

The show ended with another full cast number, “Imagine” as performed on “Glee” (originally written by John Lennon). Filled with lyrics like “Imagine all the people/sharing all the world,” this inspirational tune ended the Cabaret on a high note. Featuring favorite songs from Disney movies and “Glee” performed by an outstanding cast, “Once Upon a Cabaret” definitely deserved a standing ovation.

Contact Christiane Olivero at [email protected].

On November 1 and 2, The Palace Theatre housed the production of “Once Upon a Cabaret” directed by junior Lauren Bender, sophomore Meredith Clark, and seniors Madeline Donovan and Robbie Nicholas. The tradition of a bi-annual Cabaret was started seven years ago by alumni Tessa Drake ’10, Laura McDonald ’10 and Lindsey Simpson ’10 and has been carried on throughout the years by enthusiastic music lovers to the delight of the Colgate student body. This semester’s show was a fun and informal event where members of the audience frequently called out to their friends in the production, cheering them on before each musical number.

To keep things interesting, every Cabaret performed over the years has a different theme that is reflected in the choice of musical numbers. “Once Upon a Cabaret,” as you may guess by the title, had a magical storybook theme and included songs from Disney movies, the television series “Glee” and various musicals. Almost half of the songs chosen were from beloved Disney classics like “Hercules,” “Aladdin” and “Beauty and the Beast,” which invoked a fond childhood nostalgia for many audience members. Comprised of 23 musical numbers, the performance was a little over an hour long, but was so entertaining that the audience was sad to see it come to an end. The cast consisted of 25 extremely talented students who sang well collectively as well as individually, and were supported throughout the performance by a five-piece band. The musical numbers chosen included solo pieces and group numbers as well as opening and closing songs performed by the full cast. Everyone had their moment in the spotlight, highlighting the incredible talents of each member of the ensemble.

The Cabaret began with “Aquarius/Let The Sun Shine In” from the musical “Hair,” an uplifting number about harmony and understanding performed by the full cast. This was followed by “Notice Me Horton” from the musical “Seussical,” “Journey To The Past” from the movie “Anastasia” and “Strangers Like Me” from Disney’s “Tarzan.” The first “Glee” song performed was a medley of Adele songs “Rumor Has It” and “Someone Like You” featuring sophomore soloist Jennifer Shelton. This proved to be one of the best numbers in the Cabaret with great choreography, excellent back up vocals and Shelton’s explosive voice leaving the audience in awe of the amount of raw talent on the stage. “Temp & The Receptionist” from the musical theater writing team Kooman and Dimond was another standout number featuring Bender and senior Joshua Jackson, who acted out a hilarious office romance. Other notable songs included “Colors Of The Wind” from “Pocahontas,” “I’ll Make A Man Out Of You” from “Mulan,” “Let Me Be Your Star” from the show “Smash” and “Too Tired” from the musical “High Fidelity.”

The show ended with another full cast number, “Imagine” as performed on “Glee” (originally written by John Lennon). Filled with lyrics like “Imagine all the people/sharing all the world,” this inspirational tune ended the Cabaret on a high note. Featuring favorite songs from Disney movies and “Glee” performed by an outstanding cast, “Once Upon a Cabaret” definitely deserved a standing ovation.

Contact Christiane Olivero at [email protected].