Current Favorite Song: “Cruel Summer” by Taylor Swift
Favorite Dance Scene: “Moses Supposes” from Singin’ in the Rain!”
“Gene Kelly and Donald O’Connor left it all on the floor. That number never fails to bring a smile to my face. Their explosion of intricate rhythms and joie de vivre demonstrate that tap is more than its parts. The movement and sounds come together to express joy in ways beyond language’s reach.”
Caroline Cahill, who is currently in her gap year, graduated last year from Professional Children’s School with the highest academic award. This fall she will be heading to Brown University, double concentrating in Theatre Arts and History, with a feminist focus! Before she heads up to Rhode Island to perform in Brown’s new performing arts center, she’ll be working this summer at a clothing store in Nantucket, Massachusetts.
Caroline has been a SHUFFLES student for 10 years! She had the time of her life performing “Dancing Through Life” in our 2019 May Show, No Place Like Home.
“It was so exhilarating,” says Caroline, “I looked forward to it the entire show!” She also has a fond memory of playing Tiger Lily in PETER PANtomime. One of the younger students gave her a drawing of Caroline in her costume, and she was so surprised and touched that this student took the time to do that. Caroline thoroughly enjoyed cheering on her and the other younger students during the show, and she still has that drawing to this day!
SHUFFLES has taught Caroline “how to truly be a part of a team”. While many people envision New York as a cold and cutthroat environment, at SHUFFLES, Caroline found “a place of collaboration, rather than competition.” She also learned “that it's always okay to be strong and wrong! It's better to go full-out and make mistakes than to hesitate.” We couldn’t agree more!
Caroline said she will miss her ”wonderful SHUFFLES teachers” most as she heads off to college. “They have pushed me to not only be the best dancer I can be, but the best version of myself. I'll never forget the encouragement and kindness they have shown me over the years. SHUFFLES has really become a second home to me. I'll also miss the extraordinary atmosphere of support that makes me feel safe taking risks.”
While not at SHUFFLES, Caroline likes to eat at The Smith with her friends and spend time with her family. She also likes heading downtown to NYU Tisch to visit her sister, and SHUFFLES alumna, Patrice! Caroline says she will miss the vibrancy and the “delightfully bustling energy” of New York City, with the millions of different people with different stories living in the same place as she does. Though she didn’t like the city when she was younger, after seeing her first Broadway show, she said “Broadway became my destination, and New York my North Star.” Though she’s ecstatic to discover Providence over the next four years, we know that the big, bright, North Star of Broadway will always guide you home!
Finally, when it comes to her career, Caroline has big plans. Here’s what she had to say: “My experience as a performer is not outside of my intellectual endeavors, but rather it informs them. It would be a dream to be on Broadway one day, but I want to weave theatre and academics together in and after college. I plan on studying history through a feminist lens, writing about women who have been left out of the dominant narrative of history.” Her career aspirations certainly coincide with her inspiration, Jessica Vosk, one of the most recent Elphabas in Wicked on Broadway. On Vosk, Caroline said, “She went to college for academics and had a career on Wall Street before ultimately deciding to become an actress. She has shown me that I can fully explore both avenues before making my choice.”
We will miss you, Caroline! We can’t wait to see what you create!
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