Members of the Peddie community gathered to watch their talented peers perform and enjoyed desserts in the chorus room on Jan. 27 for Dessert Theater. The sixth annual Dessert Theater showcase featured 29 students singing selections from various musicals such as Hamilton and Dear Evan Hansen.

This year, the overarching theme of the songs performed was “Family Matters,” which expressed how the performers and the Peddie community were all connected like family members. Director of Choral Music Marisa Green revealed the inspiration behind the theme of the Theater. “There were some songs we wanted to do for a while,” said Green. “I started to look at what some of these things had in common—and that was the different types of relationships.” According to Green, many duets performed were “love duets,” and “love” turned out to be a common theme among the other songs as well. “We wanted to explore different family relationships such as parent and child or siblings. It turns out there was a lot of great material around these themes. It was a fun way to look at repertoire and present it so it was not simply a random assortment,” said Green.

“I had so much fun! I performed “Our Prayer” from The Color Purple in a duet,” said Hannah Keaton ’20. Caroline Coudert-Morris ’20, another performer in the Dessert Theater, spoke on her first non-chorus performance at school. “It was a nerve-wrecking thrill, and I enjoyed every moment of it!” said Coudert-Morris.

“Dessert Theater served as a spectacular showcase of what Peddie Theater can do. It was great to be able to watch your friends and classmates perform and pull off something really fantastic. Although all of the numbers were really well done, an especial favorite of mine would be the finale: ‘The Schuyler Sisters,’” said audience member Alexandra Drake ’20, referring to the performance by Kavya Borra’20, Becky Harris’19, Isabella LaGrego’19, Alex Lenart’20, Guila Marolda’18, and Mia Pagasnan ’19 of the song from the musical Hamilton.

Assistant Director of Choral Music Zackary Krieger further reflected on the show. “Everything went well. I was a little concerned after the dress rehearsal, but it really came together. It was exciting,” said Krieger, who went on to give a shout-out to Coudert-Morris, “who stepped in last minute and did an amazing job.” This was Krieger’s fourth year holding the show. “His predecessor, Diana Corliss, started it off to give her students an opportunity to perform. It was the idea that the teacher and student could collaborate. Instead of me conducting this whole choir or orchestra, it’s really a collaborative thing between adults and kids,” further explained Green.

The desserts were just as well received as the performances. “The baked goods were delicious – especially the brownies,” said Chi Phan ’20.