On Saturday, in the Black Box Theatre, Sofie Spilman emerged onto a stage with only a spotlight to light her. Spilman presented her senior showcase, a cabaret, to a nearly packed house. A feat not to be overlooked, since Mesa State’s first home football game was going on at the very same time.
Spilman sang each song with such passion that it would be a struggle for the audience to not be moved by her powerful Mezzo Soprano voice that was seemingly never off key.
Although Spilman sang in front of crowds before, this experience was extremely intimidating for her. Although, knowing that most of the theater was filled by  family and friends there to watch her succeed helped the nerves go down. “Most of them were my good friends, so it was very comforting,” Spilman said.
Fellow Senior Holly Longmore, whose own cabaret will take place next semester, had some words about the entire process of a cabaret. “It’s very intimidating,” she said. “But it’s also fun because you get to sing whatever songs you want.”
A cabaret is a one-woman show which consists of six songs: an Operetta, show tune, jazz song, rock song, and something written in the last ten years. Picking the right songs is a huge part of the process. “You write down every song you’ve ever wanted to sing,” Longmore said. Although they start off with a broad spectrum of songs, narrowing them down is actually easier than it seems. Since all six songs must be from different genres, nixing the ones you don’t really love isn’t that difficult. Also helping this process is assistant professor Jeremy Franklin head of the music theater program. Franklin played a vital role in the planning of these cabarets and has his students sing through the songs to help narrow down their options.
Spilman’s song choices built on the theme of relationships. The songs came from a variety of places. All the way from plays such as “Guys and Dolls,” “Slide Show,” “The Wild Party,” “Music Box Review of 1924,” and “Cabaret,” to a song by pop singer/songwriter Sara Bareilles.
Although all the songs in Spilman’s showcase were a joy to listen to, there was, of course, a standout. Spilman’s fourth song, “Old Fashioned Love Story” from the musical “The Wild Party” was, without a doubt, the crowd favorite. Lyrics such as, “I need a good-natured, old-fashioned lesbian love story, the kind of tale my mama used to tell,” had the audience roaring with laughter. “Old Fashioned Love Story” was also Spilman’s favorite song to sing.
Because this was her senior showcase, and because she truly has a great love of the theatre, Spilman practiced countless hours in order to get every element of her performance just right.
“I practiced by myself for at least an hour a day, and for a half an hour whenever my accompanist was available (Doug Morrow),” she said.
Having to do her own cabaret was something that was a great help for Spilman. As a graduating senior, the process really helped her prepare for her future endeavors.
“I plan to audition for cruise ships and do cabaret there,” she said. “I really got an idea of how much prep time I would need for my own show.”