Evita, one of the many shows put on by McCallum, was performed 10 years ago, and captured the audience’s attention when it went all the way to Central America, as the McCallum theater program took to the stage in Costa Rica and performed at the Municipal Theatre with the accompaniment of the local Costa Rican orchestra. While the show featured many thespians, one actress took the lead role as Ava Peronne in the show and has been dominating the theatrical world since.

Aline Mayagoitia is a class of 2013 alumni, who, as a freshman, took the lead role in Evita. She took the show all the way to Costa Rica, and performed the musical in both Spanish and English to over one thousand guests, which was no easy feat. After joining the world of professional theater, Mayagoitia returned to McCallum to offer guidance to the theater community in the form of a Q&A panel.

Mayagoitia’s time at McCallum was well spent, through her lasting friendships with peers, like-minded thespians and her teachers. She learned lots from her time with the MacTheatre department, especially from her musical director at the time, Paul Pew.

“He taught us that score, and I learned so much about music,” Mayagoitia said. “He taught me everything I know, and even introduced me to Ragtime, which is one of my favorite shows.”

Pew, now a math and private piano teacher, described his student as a triple threat: a talented singer, dancer and actor.

After McCallum, Mayagoitia pursued musical theatre at the University of Michigan. There she founded and participated in a diverse theatre company, and also worked with different theatre programs throughout her college experience.

Mayagoitia most recently took the role of Catherine Howard in the Broadway musical SIX, a production based on the lives of the six wives of King Henry VIII, that has toured internationally in countries from Asia to Europe. Mayagoitia performs in the U.S. leg of the tour and with five to seven shows a week, Mayagoitia has performed in more than 400 shows with the cast so far.

Pew sat in the audience of her show on Oct. 8 at the Bass Concert Hall, observing the high energy and passionate performance she delivered. He said he was astonished at Mayagoitia’s work ethic and ability to perform the same intense show night after night.

“I’m so proud of her and proud to be a part of her life, and one of the little people she can thank when she gets her Tony,” Pew said.

Mayagoitia returned to McCallum in early October to share stories and insight on being an actor at a professional level. She spoke about everything, from auditioning for Broadway to directing cinematography. She even said that she carried her musical theatre experiences at McCallum with her to every audition.

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On Oct. 3, Aline Mayagoitia returned to McCallum to share some professional actress anecdotes and answer questions from MacTheatre thespians. Flip the card to see what they asked her and how she responded.

One student took her words especially to heart, hoping to follow in her footsteps. Senior Sydney Safarik, who played Charity in MacTheatre’s fall musical, Sweet Charity, was particularly grateful to have the opportunity to hear Mayagoitia speak about her experiences.

“I loved what she had to say,” Safarik said. “She was so full of knowledge about the industry and the process I am going through right now. She was so grounded and comfortable with everyone, and it made me feel like if someone else can come from McCallum and do it, then so can I.”

Safarik said that after listening to Mayagoitia’s speech, she feels even more committed to pursuing her own musical theatre dreams.

“[Mayagoitia] is such an inspiration to me, and I feel more affirmed in my own aspirations now that I have seen [the career] carried out successfully from someone from Mac,” Safarik said.

Mayagoitia’s memorable visit and the lessons she taught left Safarik with another career ambition: to make her own triumphant return to McCallum and follow in Mayagoitia’s footsteps.

“Hopefully one day I can come back just like she did,” Safarik said.

As for Mayagoitia, she will continue her performances in SIX and is working around the clock to deliver her best performance each night for everyone who walks into the theater. While the tour dates for SIX can extend as far as 2026, Mayagoitia will not be a part of the cast for that long.

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On Oct. 3, Aline Mayagoitia returned to McCallum to share some professional actress anecdotes and answer questions from MacTheatre thespians. Flip the card to see what they asked her and how she responded.

“With SIX and British producers, they love cleaning house every 12 months, meaning every 12 months it’s a new cast,” Mayagoitia said. “I will stay in SIX as long as I am offered it, and as long as my body can keep up.”

With excruciating hours and little time in between performances, the work can not only be tiring, but also make it harder for Mayagoitia to maintain relationships.

“At a certain point, all of your friends tend to leave the business to pursue other careers, which is partially because of how hard it is to stay in contact with friends and family because of the schedule,” Mayagoitia said. “It’s the opposite of a normal career, so whenever I’m available to call, they’re about to go to bed or they call and I have to be on stage in three minutes. It’s definitely difficult.”

Through the ups and downs of show business, Mayagoitia has continued to thrive in her career and carve out time to share her experience and her expertise with others.

This story was originally published on The Shield Online on December 8, 2023.