Although the season of school musicals is over and the AHS fall play is a distant memory, Roaring Fork Valley’s teen theater community finished the school year with a bang in Theater Aspen’s annual Teen Cabaret, May 6^-8. This year, the theme of the cabaret was childhood, and the actors in the cabaret pulled from their own experiences and memories to create a unique piece of theater.

The cabaret is a rare form of theater in the valley because the students who participate in the cabaret are also in charge of collaborating to create the script along with their director, Allie Walsh. The play is composed of shorter, independent musical numbers and skits that all relate back to the larger theme. Some students feel like this form of theater is a refreshing break from the typical play.

“My credits in the valley are numerous, but also redundant. I’ve done musical after musical and they all have a predetermined plot and cast,” AHS junior Luke Ryan said. “There is not much creative expression on the actor’s part, but with the cabaret, we were able to completely take control of who we wanted to be and what we wanted to sing. It’s challenging of course, but also a breath of fresh air.”

AHS junior Kaia Vresilovic agreed that the process of creating their own show made the final product unique and rewarding.

“It’s different than any show I’ve ever done, and it was pretty hard at times. But once we got the hang of it, seeing our own work made us feel proud and almost made it more worthwhile,” Vresilovic said.

Cabaret director Allie Walsh said that she is impressed with the outcome, and happy to be working with returning students from last year as well as newcomers. In addition, she felt as though the Teen Cabaret has come a long way from the performance she directed last year.

“Act one is as long as our entire show last year! You guys are doing amazing,” Walsh said when addressing the cast in one of their final rehearsals.

In addition to providing audience members with entertainment, this years Cabaret had a second purpose. Walsh and the students decided that the profits from concessions would go Comic Relief, a charity that works to reduce poverty through theater. This was inspired by the celebration of Red Nose Day on May 26^th, in which people coming together and help children worldwide.

When it came to the final product of the Cabaret, Ryan took great pride in the outcome and deemed the experience a wonderful one that showcased many elements of theater for each individual.

“It was a fantastic collaborative process,” Ryan said. “We let our creative juices flow, and with the help of each other and Allie, we birthed a show that highlighted our talents perfectly.”