by Dalton Johnson-Staff Writer
Every year the Iowa Lakes Community College music department performs a spring musical for the community to enjoy. This year’s musical is “Mamma Mia” which is about a young girl named Sophie who is getting married, but she does not know who her father is. She invites three men from her mother’s past in hopes of finding which one is her father.
The Iowa Lakes music department has picked several college students to be in the cast this year. One of these college students is Camden McKenney, who is a freshman Music Education transfer at Iowa Lakes. He plays the role of Pepper. Pepper is a waiter who is very flirtatious with women.
McKenney got his start in theater while attending high school at Estherville-Lincoln- Central. While there, he performed in quite a number of theatrical roles
“I played Mr. Body when we did our adaptation of ‘Clue.’ I also voiced the plant for ‘Little Shop of Horrors’ this past fall,” said McKenney. While in high school, McKenney also participated in large group speech which helped his acting skills.
“I was a pirate in Wade Bradford’s ‘How to Kiss a Girl,’ and then I was Lord Orgon in ‘Tartuffe’,” said McKenney. McKenney said that he thinks that the cast this year for Mamma Mia is great and is looking forward to performing the show.
McKenney is not the only student at Iowa Lakes to be cast for a part in the musical. Kaela Baker, a sophomore general education transfer, is also a cast member. Baker plays the main character Sophie. Just like McKenny, Baker was also involved in theater during high school. Unlike McKenny however, Baker was involved in theater long before high school.
“I’ve done theater since I was baby Jesus when I was a baby. Since then I have been participating in church musicals and theater things,” said Baker. Baker was also involved in drama club during middle school as well. During high school however, is when Baker really got involved with theater.
“In high school I was in drama and speech and of course now (in college). In between those, I did summer camps and then I was an intern after middle school at a theater.”
With Baker’s extensive theater experience, she has had several roles in different productions.
“I played Almira Gultch in the ‘Wizard of OZ,’ and I’ve played one of Annie’s sisters in ‘Annie Get Your Gun’,” said Baker. “There was this weird play that we did that I was one of the leads of. It was these two kids that were fighting on the playground. I did this play called ‘The Play that Goes Wrong’ and I was the lead detective, Chris Bean,” said Baker.
With Mamma Mia soon to be Baker’s most recent production, she, just like McKenny, thinks that the cast for this year’s production is great.
“Even without knowing them, we’ve all got great chemistry already,” said Baker. “I think it’s going really well so far.”
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