When you hear the word “Cabaret,” images of Alan Cummings, clad in garters and suspenders and belting out “Willkommen,” might come to mind.

On March 2 and 3, Sweet Briar College senior Rosanna Hawkins’ production of “Star Struck Dinner Cabaret” may not have a bare-chested Emcee flanked by seductive Kit Kat Girls, but it will be an entertaining night of comedy and Broadway hits.

“It’s actually very G-rated,” Hawkins, the show’s director, said. “There is only one song that has anything in it that wouldn’t be appropriate [for children] and we’re changing the words for the show. I have lots of little cousins and wanted them to be able to come and see the show.”

Rosanna Hawkins '07 will direct and perform in "Star Struck Dinner Cabaret" this weekend. For her senior directorial project, Hawkins will transform the Josey Dining Room at Prothro Commons into a nightclub, albeit a family friendly one. The minimalist set includes tables for the audience and a sparse black background, the backside of which will serve as a dressing room.

The program features “Popular” from Broadway’s “Wicked” and “Little Girls” from “Annie,” complete with choreography. “It should be fun and very clean,” Hawkins, a theater, music and dance major, said. “My idea when planning it was a night of comedy, just something where people could sit back and laugh.”

For Hawkins, working on “Star Struck Dinner Cabaret” is a dream come true. While at Sweet Briar, she has lent her talents to numerous plays – “Merry Wives of Windsor,” “Steel Magnolias,” “Tintypes,” “The Frogs,” “Silent Heroes,” “Metamorphoses” and “A Little Night Music” – but she had yet to do dinner theater.

“I wanted to provide the Sweet Briar community with something they haven’t had much experience with,” she said. “I have always wanted to be part of a dinner theater and thought, ‘What a better way to be in one than to direct one?’ ”

Cast members Kim Battad '07 and Nikki Soulsby '09 rehearse. Photo by Cat Ashley '07. Hawkins, who also will perform in the show, shares the stage with Sweet Briar students Kimberley Battad ’07, Emily Olson ’07, Katie Bird ’09, Sarah Hall ’09, Kate Lydin ’09, Nikki Soulsby ’09 and Ally Lynch ’10. “Every one of them brings something new to the situations that we find ourselves in,” Hawkins said of her cast. “I am so grateful for every one of them.”

Hawkins, who called “Star Struck Dinner Cabaret” her “first big directing project,” said working with friends provided some challenges. “The hardest thing about directing my peers and friends is establishing authority at rehearsals,” she said.

“I know that none of them want to disappoint me and in turn I don’t want to disappoint them. Finding that level of authority that established that I’m in control but still said, ‘I want your help’ is difficult.”

If you talk to her cast, however, Hawkins has nothing to worry about.

“It’s definitely been great to work with Rosanna,” Ally Lynch said. “She’s had great ideas for the show, but she’s also letting each of us add a lot of our own color to the pieces. It’s different to be directed by a peer, but we get everything done and still have a lot of fun.”

Hawkins (center) and the cast of “Star Struck Dinner Cabaret” rehearse. Photo by Cat Ashley '07.
Hawkins, who is known to bring hot chocolate to rehearsal, also has inspired confidence in her cast members. “This is the first time I’ve ever done a major theater production,” Sarah Hall said. “Rosanna has been wonderful. She has given me a lot of confidence as I really start to learn the art of performing.

“She has played off my strengths, dancing in particular, to give me the confidence I need to handle the vocal parts of the musical. Because she is a good friend of the cast, I feel that we respect her even more. She keeps rehearsals fun and energetic, but she still maintains the boundary between director and performer.”

Cast member Kimberley Battad agreed. “I think she is a very talented individual and I know she will always be honest with me,” she said. “Because we are friends, I don’t have a problem approaching her with a problem or question about something. Rosanna is a very patient person and I know this show is going to be amazing.”

Doors open at 5:30 p.m. and the show begins at 6. The performance is open to the public, and admission is the cost of dinner: $6.75 for guests, $3.50 for ages 3 to 11; $5.50 with a Sweet Briar ID, $2.75 for ages 3 to 11.

Reservations are not required, but are recommended. For more information or reservations, e-mail battad08@sbc.edu .

— By Suzanne Ramsey, SBC staff writer