The Appalachian Musical Theatre Club hosted its first cabaret of the spring semester Saturday night in IG Greer Studio Theatre. The evening included performers singing songs from roles they felt they would not typically be cast in.
Aligning with their efforts to host one to two events per semester, AMTC’s Miscast Cabaret brought together five performers who played characters they felt were the opposite of them in terms of gender, status and personality.
From the yearning Jay Gatsby in the musical “The Great Gatsby” to the notorious villain Dr. Facilier in “The Princess and the Frog,” the choices performers made gave them a chance to have fun being someone they are not.
Andrew Hurst, a freshman psychology major, performed the song “For Her” as the character Jay Gatsby, a song that showcased Gatsby’s deep love for someone, a feeling opposite to Hurst’s.
“It’s just so fun hearing how people describe that feeling,” Hurst said. “It’s like the closest thing I get to any romantic attraction is by faking it.”
Alongside Hurst, Alex LeMerle-Mousset, a sophomore veterinary technology major, was another performer during the night. Mousset said this event allowed her to “get back out there” with performing, choosing the character Amos Hart in “Mister Cellophane” for this moment.
As someone who has done theater her entire life, Mousset said she was glad to be able to regain her footing on stage and said it is “never too late” to do so.
The performers’ love for characters, singing, dancing and jazz was made possible by the production done behind the scenes. The AMTC’s events chair and sophomore geology major Cade Zenes hosted and put the event together, while co-president and junior theatre education major Whitney Dyer worked sound.
These two made the event possible, which Dyer attributed to their wanting to keep the performing arts alive at App State. They strive to get the student body involved with their cabarets and theater to give students opportunities for expression.
“It’s not like people don’t have a willingness to perform or to participate and to be a part of the club, but I think it’s difficult to time manage,” Dyer said. “I respect that people say no when they don’t feel like they can do it, but I think that’s been a challenge, is to get people.”
Zenes added that Hurricane Helene resulted in the cancellation of some events, which he hopes they can bring back at a later date.
Currently, the club is gearing up for its fall musical announcement sometime toward the end of the semester. For those looking to get more involved, Zenes said production position applications will open over the summer.
“All of our musicals are entirely student-run, student-directed, so if it’s a passion anyone has, I think getting people involved that typically wouldn’t consider it because they’re not in the program is really important,” Zenes said.
