East’s Theatre presented “Cabaret:  A night of murder and mystery” on Friday, February 9th, and Saturday, February 10th.  The dessert show served as a fundraiser for the theatre department.

The cast had been plucked up since mid December, giving cast members almost two months to practice for their big performances.  The cabaret is a new show introduced to East, consisting of short skits, solos and group musical performances.

The show opened up with Matt Saltzman, Azereyah Cole, and Micah Friesen performing the song “Poison in My Pocket” from (A Gentleman’s Guide to Murder).  This first song set the mood for the rest of the show, presenting an array of comedy as well as serious pieces.  From this very first song, the audience was then whisked into the first group number led by Sophie Holihan in “Revolting Children” (Matilda).

The show had a decent balance of solos, duets, trios, and group numbers.  The musical numbers were over the top,  and the enjoyment of the performers was evident.  Their faces showed the investment to the characters they played, which only made the crowd get more lost in the show.

Performers such as Madeline Dumler had the chance to perform a song from one of her favorite musicals, “Seventeen” (Heathers).  In other performers you could see a genuine connection between their duet partner, which only strengthened the performance such as Jovon Fogleman and Helena Muller.

The show was also kept lighthearted by the MCs back and forth banter, which revolved around the topic of, well, murder.  Tatum Sesow and Matt Duhs kept the crowd entertained, playing well of each other, as well as their delightful (or not so delightful) puns.  The two broke out into several songs in mock argument over who would MC the show.  A favorite would have to be “The Ten Duel Commandments” (Hamilton).

Overall the show was mesmerizing to watch, and will hopefully be a tradition for East over the next few  years.