The lilting sound of bagpipes, band music, and excited chatter filled the air on Friday, Dec 14 as Edwardsville High School hosted the Annual Madrigal Dinner at Liberty Middle School.
While many of the Madrigal performers themselves are chamber choir or drama students, anyone in the student body may audition for a role in the Madrigal. Servers are required to hold both an accent and a middle ages persona throughout the night—no easy task when you’re simultaneously passing out trays of steaming hot wassail.
“It’s difficult to stay in accent,” said junior Zoe Schmitt. “I don’t even know what accent I was doing, [I was] just going for something vaguely European.”
Beyond the servers, though, there are still characters to be found. Chamber choir comprises the nobility, a group of lords and ladies who provide entertainment both with their voices and their mannerisms. Sophomore Clay Schoolman played a clingy lord, doting on his lady (much to her dismay and annoyance) throughout the night. Senior Abby Davis brings to life a character who can’t remember anything but the last thing she’s said—and even that is a bit much to ask at some times.
Davisis responsible for more than just her part in the performance, however. She wrote the show from the bottom up, with only minimal collaboration between herself and Choir Director Lynda Marshall.
“We worked on the spells together,” saidMarshall, “but other than that, she wrote the show herself.”
Marshallsaid that they have been planning and writing the show since last spring, and rehearsing since early October.
The performance, however, wasn’t the only part of the evening. There’s a reason it’s called the annual Madrigal Dinner.
Media Center Specialist Sheryl Burian took charge of overseeing the food preparations and training of the wait staff. “I teach them what to do [while serving],” Burian said, though she’d actually taken the place of a server who’d gotten sick earlier in the evening.
The dinner consisted of baked chicken and potatoes, as well as figgy pudding, wassail, and other drinks and appetizers. All of the recipes are those of EHS’ head cook, Kandy Sullivan. As servers arrived with heaping trays of food, a delectable aroma wafted through the room—telltale proof that the performance would not be the only exceptional part of the evening.
Holding to Madrigal tradition, the audience was read the rules of the performance, and any members found to be breaking these rules or practicing “witchcraft”—using their cell phones or cameras—ventured onstage while the Nobility made them dance or sing as penance. Some audience members, unfazed by this threat, take advantage of the rules and photograph servers purposely. After a flashbulb pops, a server runs from the room shouting that the camera is a “soul stealer,” much to the rest of the audience’s amusement.
Among those pulled onstage was John Schoolman, father of chamber choir singer Clay Schoolman. He had not been breaking any rules, but a cast member heard that it was his birthday, resulting in the cast rushing him onto the stage and singing “Happy Birthday” at the top of their lungs.
The evening wound down soon after, though, as cast and servers sang a soothing rendition of “Silent Night” while exiting the auditorium. A collection of current and past band directors from the area, including District 7’s own Mark Haun, Chris Stevens, and Rick Dempsey played soft carols as the audience left the auditorium to greet the cast.
Gathered outside waiting for the audience, the cast had a collective glow on their faces. “I’m really proud of how the show went,” said senior Elizabeth McBride. “It was a great night.”
As audience members continued to filter from the auditorium, among the chatter, a whisper of the night’s merriment and holiday cheer could still be heard. Through the Madrigal Dinner, the spirit of “Ye Olde England” persists, if only for a night.