The Casper College music department is in the middle of their annual madrigal feast dinner theater.

The lights are dimmed, the tables are set, and the audience is surrounded by costumed students who perform a mix of traditional Christmas carols and renaissance era music all while serving a four course dinner. It is time once again for a week of Dr. Pat Patton's Madrigal Feast being held through Saturday in the black box theater at the Gertrude Krampert Theatre.

"It's an exercise in many different things. It started many years ago, this is I think our sixteenth, and it's not the first tradition, this has been done around the country for years."

Casper College combines all of their choirs with a handful of brass and percussion students to put on this well known style of dinner theater with some unique twists.

Patton says, "Each one that you hear of around the different parts of the country has a different flavor to it. Some of them are very elegant and some of them are really celebrating the renaissance time period. Ours has evolved from the renaissance time period to what happens in current times and crosses that over with some renaissance fair, or at least renaissance costumes (laughs). But, it's an event I think that is really unlike any other one here in the community."

With previous shows loosely theming their scripts upon Monty Python, Pirates of the Caribbean, and American Idol, it seemed appropriate for students to write a show based within the world of the Harry Potter movies.

"I think the thing I enjoy the most about the madrigal feast is the creativity that comes from the students because they really create the entire thing," says Patton.

Tickets are sold out for the remaining performances but can be reserved for next year by contacting Kathleen Coe at 307-268-2606.

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