Cabaret Onchain is a collaborative production composed of artists and technologists including Vessy Mink, Tiffany Leard + Co, Ann Marie Alanes, and produced by Megan “Trogs” Troglio. It is an evening of music and celebration spiked with technology that spotlights the talented women of Chicago’s web3 community. The first show was held Thursday, May 23rd, (the day following the famously known Bitcoin Pizza Day), at Davenport’s Piano Bar.
We had the opportunity to sit in on a retrospective led by Estela Duhart where she guided a conversation with Chicago web3 + creative heavyweights and event organizers, Trogs and Ann Marie. The goal was to learn the process of creating Cabaret Onchain, what went well, what they learned from the process and performance, and to explore how the performer’s personalities brought the show together.
Before Cabaret was On Chain
Today, most people know Megan Troglio as “Trogs.” She’s known as a gallery manager, a social media strategist, and an internet.artist. We learned a less known side of her during the call when she shared her secret desire for creating Cabaret Onchain. “I started in theater. Recently, I’ve been a person behind the scenes, but I grew up in the wings of Peoria theaters and saw firsthand all that it takes to bring even one performer to the stage. So from those experiences I knew it was possible to build your own stage.”
“I reached out to Ann Marie about Cabaret Onchain’s concept: to perform and pair the event with digital assets. I found a venue that would host the show and it was God’s timing for the week to be packed with other Chicago Crypto events. I was nervous, but she said, ‘Let’s go for it’.”
For Ann Marie, Cabaret Onchain is an extension of the artistic growth she’s been experiencing. Her public expression as an artist began when Trogs helped her open her first gallery show at imnotArt and evolved into becoming a contributor to the Gigazine Magazine. gigazine.lol
Ann Marie was drawn to decentralized technologies when she learned that web3 was opening new, equitable sources of revenue for recording artists and mixed media artists. “Back in 2016, I began on the more technical side with blockchain then moved on to helping creatives. It’s awesome to have been onboarded as an artist into the creative side of the space, even though I was always working behind the scenes for NFT artists and musicians.”
The Artist’s Journey
Ann Marie’s journey as a recording artist began on a shoestring budget, recording music out of her producer’s bedroom studio and only recently transcribing her songs. Through synchronicity and networking, Ann Marie was re-connected by Trogs to Tiffany Leard, an accomplished pianist. From there, the connections grew. Tiffany brought on violinist, Joe DeAngelo. Ann Marie then hired a composer in Argentina to transcribe her recordings. Down the line, she realized the arrangement would be improved with backing vocalists. She brought in a friend and old classmate from the School of the Art Institute who brought on her partner and instrumentalist, Dante Nottoli. “I ended up having an entire band!”
Cabaret Onchain is more than a community coming together, they’re building a tribe. Ann Marie likes to share that Tiffany Leard, pianist, and Joe DeAngelo, violinist, are a couple, and backing vocals Bredia Santoro and Dante Nottoli are also partners.
Building a Community
The act of supporting a community and your partners on the stage is a cornerstone for Trogs. Knowing that your team has your back and is going to support you through the entire process is critical as a performer. Creating the community around Cabaret Onchain created a support network of people who went the distance to make sure everything was right. Ann Marie added, “When you put on a show, you worry, will anyone show up? It was cool to have people come and take a chance on us and see them enjoy themselves.”
A highlight for Trogs is seeing what happens when you put trust into people to take a stage and see how their energy and creativity is manifested. “I’m grateful to be part of the process,” and adds, “When you imagine all that could be, and do everything you can to make your dreams happen - that moment you let go, allowing things to become greater than your singular perception- that’s magic.”
Cabaret Onchain is more than traditional art forms. The team released a collection of tokens including a 3D model of a t-shirt and a physical shirt connected by NFC chips on chain that serve as companion pieces to the live performances. “I believe in Chicago technology so I wanted people working hard in this space to be involved.” This led Trogs to incorporate Vennity Labs into Cabaret Onchain. “I wanted people to claim free collectibles as proof of attendance.”
Going On Chain and Beyond
“We’re going to continue bringing Cabaret Onchain, on chain, truly, and that’s going to allow us to continue our relationship with our fans and reward them for supporting our vision.”
“We’ve both produced a lot of events for other people. Megan opened my eyes to the fact that I can produce an event where I can be on the stage.”
Ann Marie stated, “The act of producing and performing has reignited my love for performance and I’m looking forward to creating events this year that push perspectives on art and technology. There are avenues where technology and arts will mix and I intend on being right at that intersection.”
Trogs adds, “A theatre is a holy place - the air in there is like walking into a cathedral or a museum. You have to take ego out of a production to respect the medium that is present. Part of that is accepting people for who they are, their talents, passions, choices they bring. You have to be strong enough in your vision and your curation to allow people to come and play, but then once you’ve built it, allow others to make what they will in the sandbox and create what they’re going to create without knocking it over - because it’s going to be a better experience for everyone to show what is possible.”