For the first time in two years, Eklektikos, the collaborative show from the Performing-Arts department, took place here at Millbrook on October 7th. Instead of coming together for the annual haunted house set up all around the school, the arts decided on hosting a collective performance in the auditorium. The audience saw pieces from the band, orchestra, dance team, dance company, theatre, and the madrigals. However there is more to the show than what spectators see.

  Eklektikos is almost entirely student-run. The costume pieces were made or provided by students involved in each piece. The madrigals made intricate costume headpieces to match their Día de los Muertos melody. The technical theatre crew is made up of all tech theatre students volunteering their time to run lighting, work the sound board, give cues, build props, and complete any other task to hold the show together. The theatrical scenes are created by students in class and transferred onto the big stage. The different dance performances are created in collaboration with students, as are the music pieces performed by the band and orchestra. Jack Mulrooney, a junior who performed with the band stated, “Once or twice a week, during class, we would spend 20 to 45 minutes rehearsing by ourselves with Mr. Payne rotating between groups. In this time we picked out the music, learned and rehearsed it, and worked on the intricacies of playing in a chamber setting.” All of what is presented originates in the classroom with the students. 

  This will have been the first show to take the stage since the 2019-2020 school year. Post-Covid lockdown, the arts department has been hesitant to have in-person performances. Christian Bartney, a senior who performed on behalf of the Wildcat Pride Dance Team, the madrigals, and Advanced Theatre, stated, “This is our first performance on the stage post-covid, so we are trying to get a big audience and trying to make sure it is really cool and that everybody sees a different side of the arts department than usual.” Coming back with the weird and wonderful Eklektikos is a way to draw in new audiences and return with a bang.

  Eklektikos is simply a showcase of all the varying talents the Millbrook Arts Department has to offer, told through the artistic vision of the students.