This article is part of a series focused on this year’s motto of Unum: Engage, which highlights how students engage as one in different groups across campus.
Extracurriculars are essential to the high school experience as breathing is to living. It also can lead to a higher chance of graduating. “Students who engage in after-school clubs or sports tend to have an increased chance of graduating high school,” according to Untapped Learning.
One of the most iconic extracurricular activities in American high schools is that of the drama program, which has a correlation to building a confident personality. According to the website Faust World, “This confidence gained from learning drama will be very applicable in school, careers, and life!”
Ms. Wilson has run drama at Cathedral for almost 19 years. Besides the plays and beloved musicals, one of the signatures of her program is the Cathedral Cabaret. Yet, Cabaret is still a mystery. As the Cathedral Cabaret has become a mainstay of the Dons community, one must ask why it matters to so many.
Before I dive into the nitty gritty, I must mention what the Cathedral Cabaret is all about. “It is an evening of song and storytelling that is very personable and conversational with the audience,” according to Ms Wilson. One surprising fact I learned from my genial conversation with Ms. Wilson is that the Cabaret show is not in the curriculum.
“The school told me that to have a show in between musicals and plays was not necessary, yet I simply responded we needed to do this,” according to Wilson. In her reasoning for why the show is something that needed to happen, she stated that “it is a chance for anyone to be performers and feeds their creative longing to be onstage without stress due to Cabarets having such a welcoming audience.”
Dylan Hill, a first-year student who has already participated in 2 Cabarets this year, had his take on why the Cabaret is such an essential part of our community. “It is an important event for students because it is an outlet to gather as a community and appreciate the hidden talents of students,” according to Hill. As the bell rang for the seventh period, I asked what he got from participating in these shows that almost disappeared after the pandemic. “What I enjoyed most about the Cabaret is having a fun time seeing new talent, especially from upper-level students,” according to Hill.
The Cabaret has served as a training ground for performers, and a practice round for those interested in directing and crew work in theater. “Organizing the Cathedral Cabaret since junior year reminds me of directing my plays in the sense that you can practice staging, lighting, and running tracks,” according to Vonn Stenehjem. Vonn was more optimistic when I asked whether Cabaret attendance was minimal or needed more audience members from outside Ms. Wilson’s crew. “Attendance has grown exponentially from begging audiences my freshman year to having a core audience monthly for each show, as many people who become Cabaret regulars end up doing theater,” according to Stenehjem.
The theater is something that many scoff at. However, as the world grows increasingly problematic, it is important to have outlets for creativity. After all, confidence building can come from the arts just as much from sports, and it helps us succeed in the uphill battle that is life.
