Right before Spring Break, five Trinitas students put together a Cabaret, which is when individual performers tell their own stories and singing different  songs. On April 5, performers Layla Valenzuela ‘23, Abby Wright ‘24, Bridgette Sanders ‘23, Matthew Ellersick ‘23, and I, Cadiz Salazar ‘23, showcased their cabarets for friends and family to see . Over the past seven weeks, each of us has had to work from nothing to create each of our own cabarets that each tell different stories. We each delved into vulnerable experiences or parts of our lives that best resonated with us, found four of our favorite songs that went along with our messages, and worked with Mr. Betts and Chris Law, our vocal instructor, to bring our stories to life. 

A lot of those seven weeks consisted of figuring out the technicalities of our performances: what order our songs would be in, when piano entrances would occur, what finalized script we would create. But I don’t think any of us anticipated how fulfilling and special our actual Cabaret performances would be. So, to illustrate how much love everyone had for the performances, I asked a couple of performers and audience members about their thoughts: 

Performer Matthew Ellersick shared, “Cabaret was an incredible experience to share an important story through music, giving us the opportunity to be vulnerable with an audience and sing some of our favorite songs.”

Layla Valenzuela, another performer, also mentioned, “I loved Cabaret, I’ve been looking forward to having my own for a long time and I was so happy to do it with all of my friends.”

Allison Lillestol ‘23, an audience member and beloved friend , expressed, “I had zero expectations going in, I didn’t even know what Cabaret was, but it ended up being the best experience of my life. Every show was so uniquely different and it was so beautiful to see everyone be so personable.” 

Isabela Gutierrez ‘23 stated, “I loved cabaret! I had no idea my friends were so talented! Just kidding. But for real, it was a great show. I laughed, I cried, I loved it! 

I myself did not really know anything about Cabaret before coming into this experience. After working for so long on my performance, it didn’t really become real until I did it for my friends and family. It was such a special experience being able to show a vulnerable side of myself. I did not expect to hear sniffles while I was singing on stage but I later discovered that my dad and aunt were crying (and believe me, they never cried). It was so much fun having a last hurrah as a senior, and the supportive environment made me so excited for what may come in the future! 

Overall, Cabaret 2023 was a hit. If you couldn’t catch this show, then be sure to go support Trinitas’ production of Cinderella!