In light of the announcement of school being moved online for the rest of the year, many people, especially seniors, have been disappointed due to the cancellation of exciting activities. Cabaret is an event that senior Maggie Eberle has always held close to her heart. “I had so much planned that I was really excited to execute,” Maggie said, “so it was disappointing that we could not perform.”
However, along with the help of senior Elan Stadelmann, she recreated music to share with the students who were planning on taking part in the cabaret. “Even though cabaret is regretfully not happening this year,” Elan said, “Maggie is currently working with me to create a fun video where we cover ‘Love is an Open Door’ from ‘Frozen’ on Broadway.”
Maggie and Elan have been close friends since freshman year; they have worked with each other on several occasions, including this year in the production of “Thoroughly Modern Millie.”
“The amount of time I have spent with Elan working on scenes, music, and dances is truly incredible,” Maggie said. “I have been able to become very familiar with his voice and overall stage presence.”
When the idea to try to execute a “makeshift” cabaret came to her mind, Maggie immediately reached out to Elan with the plan to perform a song together virtually. “We were really on the same wavelength about the song we wanted to sing,” Elan said. “It might have been the fact that I had recently watched ‘Frozen,’ but it was the song I had in mind the entire time.” Moreover, when Maggie presented Elan with the idea to perform “Love is an Open Door,” he was very excited.
Maggie and Elan are working on the app Smule, which provides a karaoke track that they sing over. “I really like working with Elan right before he is recording,” Maggie said, “He sings to me, and we talk and workshop it, and it makes me feel like we are together and collaborating in person.”
While recording the song is already an ambitious goal, they also work on acting over the recording so that it comes together to produce a cohesive project. Another part that they are adding to the recording is choreography. “Although the logistics of choreographing and filming a dance were difficult to work out, I had a bunch of different ideas I wanted to try,” Maggie said.
Since they are unable to meet up in person and dance together, they will each be filming their parts of the choreography at home and putting them together with a video editing software. The final element to the performance is costumes, wearing clothing similar to “Frozen” characters Hans and Anna. “Picking what my character wears has definitely been one of my favorite parts of the experience,” Elan said.
Maggie is excited to still be able to work with Elan one last time. “I know we work well together and have great on stage chemistry, so it was really important to me that we get one final chance to work together,” Maggie said. While Elan and Maggie can’t collaborate in person to create the video, they hope to meet up when social distancing orders are lifted and when it is safe, so they can do partner choreography and spend a little more time working together before they leave for college.
