Singers Take on the Renaissance, with a Few Twists

At a recent rehearsal for what will be an important performance, senior Paul Bierwagen cavorted, stretched, and leaped. He bulged his eyes and grimaced wildly. And when he spoke, it was with a melodious, if slightly exaggerated, Jamaican accent mimicking, of all people, Bob Marley—or rather, the late singer’s ghost.

And while Bierwagen’s performance was every bit as entertaining and funny as it sounds, he wasn’t preparing for stand-up comedy. His burst of Caribbean panache was actually an integral part of a play-within-a-show he and his fellow performers, all part of an elite singing group at the school, have spent months preparing for—set not in Jamaica, but in Renaissance Europe.

The ABRHS Madrigal Dinner this weekend will feature all 23 Madrigal singers and is the group’s “big event, the one I think people really know us for,” said Jennifer Moss, director of choral activities at ABRHS.

The event is styled after similar medieval-themed dinner performances, where the singers play lords and ladies of Renaissance Europe, complete with period costumes, and serenade guests as a group and at their tables while guests enjoy a four-course chicken dinner, to be served by members of other ABRHS choral groups.

And there’s also the play, “Scrooge, Marley and Me,” a loose retelling of Dickens’ classic tale featuring ‘spirits’ of varying kinds, plenty of “bad puns and random, funny parts,” said Moss, and, of course, the ghost of Bob Marley.

While the singers themselves are reluctant to use the word ‘elite,’ make no mistake—those who make the cut are among the school’s most musically talented. In addition to having strong voices, Madrigal hopefuls must also have what Moss called “musical readiness”—the ability to learn quickly, accept critique, and a “certain quality that allows them to sing a more advanced repertoire,” which includes, in addition to Renaissance-era pieces, a variety of other music types in many different languages.

The group is comprised of boys and girls from all grades and levels of familiarity. While some arrive with limited experience, “A lot of the kids have a strong arts or music background,” said Moss.

One such student, graduating senior Katy Early, is a four-year veteran of the group who plays the queen in the play (and is also the “queen” of the Madrigal singers) whose interest in joining the singers started long before her high school years had begun.

“I’ve been singing since I was 3, and when I saw the Madrigals perform when I was in elementary school, I knew I wanted to be a part of it,” said Early.

Though Early called the end of her time in the group “surreal and sad,” she said she is eager to begin the next chapter of her life, when she’ll head to Oberlin College and Conservatory of Music to study classical voice and drama.

“Every year, at least a few will go into music performance or music education (after graduation),” said Moss. “I’m so happy about that, but my goal is also to make it so that if they don’t do that, they can still incorporate (singing and music) into their lives somehow.”

While this weekend's dinner is the Madrigals’ main yearly event, over the course of this year they also sang in nine school performances, two state festival performances, and about “15-20 community outreach performances,” said Moss.

Most of the group’s outreach performance opportunities are centered around the holidays and are standing engagements or come through word of mouth. One new experience this year, at the Cotting School in Lexington, actually came by way of a former Madrigal, Elizabeth McDonald, who teaches at the school.

Performing for the disabled students there was “really awesome, really meaningful,” said Moss. “The kids could really see what it was like (for Cotting students) who really struggled. It was important for them to make that connection.”

And such connections can come in all forms, as with freshman Max Rosenzweig, who said his involvement with the Madrigal singers contributes greatly to his overall success and happiness at school.

Rosenzweig said while he’d sung in the choir at R.J. Grey Junior High School, he “didn’t really think of myself as talented” until he started with the Madrigal singers, and said his experience so far “has been great. I feel happier and I know it affects my grades positively, because I always have something to look forward to during the school day.”

And that sense of camaraderie and collaboration is one that was clear at the recent rehearsal, and one that is shared by both the students and their teacher.

“Sometimes I’m shocked I get paid to do this,” said Moss. “They’re so into the music, they work so hard, and they make it so much fun.”

The will be held this weekend, May 28 and 29, at the Indian Hill Music Center in Littleton. Tickets are available at mktix.com or by calling Moss at 978-264-4700, extension 3448.