‘Smiles, Skits, and Showtunes’ Feature: The Noteables Spring Concert Highlights Broadway and Disney Songs

The lights dimmed in Lowell Lecture Hall on April 10 to set the scene for The Noteables Spring 2026 concert. The first number was an entire group performance of “Sit Down You’re Rocking The Boat” from the 1950 stage musical “Guys & Dolls.”

The Noteables is a non-audition show choir group at Harvard, open to all — even students from the graduate schools. The group was officially founded in the fall of 1990, with its first spring concert in the spring of 1991. The group’s mission is to enable anyone who wishes to sing to find a comfortable space to do so.

The Noteables 2026 Spring Concert featured an evening of Disney and Broadway songs, like “Take Me Or Leave Me” from the 1996 musical “Rent” to “Belle” from the 1991 animated movie “Beauty and the Beast.” The performance was a mix of theater songs and skits, the latter which broke up the variety of musical numbers to pull together a cohesive storyline.

Interspersed between Disney and Broadway songs, the skits centered around the dilemma of finding true love that was full of nostalgia. The main character, Belle (Maria F. Luque ’26) had to overcome her yearning for a love like in the fairytales, while managing her relationship with the player Gaston (Aiman Z. Anuar ’27), with both characters based on the ones from the musical.

Throughout the night, the performers frequently interacted with each other on stage, projecting their voices with mics in hand or sheer volume.

“I think you can see how much fun they have with it, so it’s nice to, like, watch it and also have a good time watching them,” said audience member Amber M. Simons ’26 in an interview with the Crimson.

To separate each scene, the lights were dimmed, with some performers racing across the stage to move props, while others quickly changed into different costumes that fit the musical number. While some songs were central to a few singers, with one singer taking on a lead role, for “Belle,” half of the actors changed into yellow dresses and sung various lines of the song.

While most songs were carried to completion — to serve the plot point of Belle’s confusion and romantic struggle — “Chiquitita” from the 2008 musical “Mamma Mia” was broken up by “Bet On It” from the 2006 musical film “High School Musical.”

For one of the Noteables members, Andra N. Benson ’26 — who played Maureen, the lead with a functioning romantic life from the musical “Rent” — the show’s purpose was very close to their heart.

“I think the show is really, like, for ourselves, for our family, and friends. And it’s just an awesome group of people,” said Benson in an interview with the Crimson.

The selection of songs felt very intentional, and carried meaning for former Noteables members like Serena D. Chen ’22.

“If we do a song, we won’t do it for four years because if someone has done a song, they can’t then do it again before they graduate. So a lot of these songs — like I did, because I graduated in 2022 — and now they’ve come back into rotation. So seeing them come back and being like, ‘Oh, we did the same choreo there,’ or like, ‘Oh, I remember that harmony.’ It’s really fun,” said Chen in an interview with the Crimson.

The Noteables has served as both a friendly and artistic space to exist for its current and past members.

“It’s such a wonderful — not just friend group — but just a safe space where you’re able to perform,” said former Noteables member Nina T. Luong ’25 in an interview with the Crimson.