I was thirteen when I performed in my first MCT show. It was a community production of Beauty and the Beast and I was cast in the adult ensemble. I had been dancing for several years at that point and had performed in numerous dance shows, but this was my first musical ever. Joe Martinez was the director—the same director who would go on to direct my first professional show five years later, and now the first MCT production I am choreographing… a number of years later. 😉
To say I had been bitten by the theatre bug would be a huge understatement. I still remember sobbing after the closing show when my parents wouldn’t let me stay for the strike party because I had school the next morning. It was my first taste of “post-show grief,” something I would have the blessing of experiencing many more times throughout my career. Theatre is a magical thing. You spend so much time creating something together, and when it’s over, it’s over. No matter how many times you do a show, it will never be the same show twice. Your cast becomes your show family, and when the show closes, so does that chapter of your life. Thirteen-year-old me was not prepared for that kind of heartbreak.
Thankfully, I was lucky enough to do many more MCT shows before moving to NYC—Cats, Bye Bye Birdie, Oklahoma!, Paint Your Wagon, The Wiz, and more. These productions not only shaped me as a performer, but gave me the confidence and experience to jump headfirst into a professional theatre career straight out of high school.
I went on to work professionally in NYC and LA for fifteen years, performing in musical theatre and dance. Throughout that time, I often reflected on how fortunate I was to have had such an early foundation through MCT. Again and again, I met artists who shared a similar story, first falling in love with theatre when an MCT tour came through their hometown.
About a year and a half ago, I moved back to Missoula with my husband (who I met doing theatre) and our two boys. One of the very first things I did was email Joe. I knew I wanted to reconnect with this community that had given me so much. Now, choreographing my first MCT Community production of Mamma Mia! feels like a true full-circle moment. Two of the Dynamos were in that very first Beauty and the Beast with me, and another was one of my dance teachers in high school. It’s a beautiful reminder of how deeply rooted and interconnected this community is.
That same sense of connection and love for live performance is what inspired me to create Last Best Cabaret, a professional entertainment company based right here in Missoula. Our upcoming show, Four Oh! Six Follies on April 4th, celebrates the magic of live performance in a fresh, immersive way and features several incredible artists you may recognize from the MCT stage. It feels especially meaningful to continue creating opportunities to collaborate with this talented community that helped shape me from the very beginning.
