A frothy, bouncy, swinging translatlantic cruise has got to have some music to keep it skipping merrily across the ocean. We wanted to mirror the joy of those maritime jaunts with all sorts of amenities from dining to cocktail service to music. As guests enter the VFW Ship 4084, they cross the treshold into another time, another world. Orchestral versions of Cole Porter tunes–heavy on big band brass–flood the venue as you walk in. Your toes will tap. And just like if you met Douglas Fairbanks and Mary Pickford on an ocean liner back in the day, you’ll have your own brush with celebrity as the infamous Diamond LaPore, straight from the even more infamous Red Fez speakeasy in Chicago, brings down the house with a musical performance. Here, we sat down with two-time Diamond Mask Award-winning actress and singer, Elise Bechtel, who performed as Diamond LaPore in Murder at the Red Fez, to interview her about her journey as a performer and her revival of Diamond for Ahoy! in this behind-the-seas blog post.

AN ENCORE PERFORMANCE: The Making of Ahoy! (Part 5)

MMP: Hello, Elise! Welcome to the MMP blog. To start, could you share with us your performance history as both a singer and an actress?

Elise: My performance history goes back as long as I can remember. I was enrolled in ballet at a very young age. I performed in The Nativity several times. I performed as Sid in a ballet production of Toy Story, Squirt in Finding Nemo, and performed in several other ballet performances over the course of about 10 years.

Outside of ballet, I have always loved musical theater. I was always singing as a kid and have memories of my parents secretly recording my performances when I thought no one was watching. My mom introduced me to The Phantom of the Opera, and it has remained one of our favorites to this day. I was part of a choir for a very brief time as a kid, which I don’t remember much of. My first memory of singing for an audience was when I sang “Candle on the Water” from Disney’s Pete’s Dragon in a talent show, I believe I was in elementary school at the time.

When I got to high-school, I stopped performing as I wanted to try my hand at sports. While I enjoyed Tennis, Track and Marching Band, there was always a quiet desire to perform. My love of musicals grew throughout high-school and college but I didn’t actually step into the theatre community until 2023 when I returned to Ridgecrest after graduating from CSUCI.

I made the decision after college to take voice lessons. I didn’t really have a goal I was working toward, I just wanted to sing. I found my voice coach, David Hodgson, through a family member and have now been taking lessons for over two years.

I auditioned first for CLOTA’s production of Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream where I played Cobweb, one of the fairies. This led me to my next show in MMP’s Murder at the Red Fez where I performed as Diamond LaPore. This was my first big acting role and also my first time singing for an audience since elementary school.

After Murder at the Red Fez, I went on to perform as The Cheshire Cat in MMP’s Malice in Wonderland, Juliet in CLOTA’s production of Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet, Mia Mallowan in MMP’s The Last Garden Party and am currently assistant directing CLOTA’s production of Medea as well as acting and dancing in the chorus.

MMP: When did you first join Master Mystery Productions?

Elise: I first joined MMP for the 2025 Revival of Murder at the Red Fez. By this time, I had been taking voice lessons for several months, and my voice coach was encouraging me to perform. The problem was there aren’t many singing opportunities in Ridgecrest outside of karaoke, which I had done a few times by this point. So when I heard that MMP was looking for someone to sing and act, I auditioned.

For my audition, I sang “Maybe This Time” from Cabaret.

Something to know about me is that I have horrible performance anxiety when singing that stems from someone telling me I couldn’t sing when I was young. This is what caused such a long pause in my vocal journey and is an anxiety I am still overcoming to this day. And to those that have had similar experiences I’d like to say, do not let anyone dim your passion. Whether it be singing, acting, learning an instrument or anything else. What matters is how you feel about it.

So, I auditioned and to my complete surprise, in the middle of Walmart, I received the email saying I had been cast as Diamond LaPore, my first role with MMP.

MMP: What are your memories as Diamond LaPore in Murder at the Red Fez?

Elise: I remember my excitement. When we had our first run through of the script, I remember thinking Daniel, our director, must have a lot of faith in my acting abilities, because I already knew Diamond would be a challenge for me. I related a lot with Diamond; She’s sarcastic, sassy and smart, but she also holds things close to her chest. I had to access emotions for her character that I hadn’t really allowed myself to reach prior.

Now onto the singing. I ended up singing three jazz songs from the 1920’s-30’s, but the most important one was “After You’ve Gone.” This is Diamond’s song, and I still find myself singing it weekly. The other two songs were “Stardust” and “Ain’t Misbehavin’.” The most challenging song was “Stardust” as I am still unlocking my high notes and my comfort vocal area is my chest voice. This was the show that I proved to myself that I could get in front of an audience again and sing, and, while I feel that I sang decently, my anxiety definitely had a front row seat to my performance. A quote that I often think of is “do it, even if you have to do it scared,” and this has oddly given me the confidence to push through my anxieties.

I wrote in my character bio at the time that Diamond was my favorite character to portray and that she would be for a long time. And now that I’ve had more experience, I can say this still holds true. She has a special place in my heart, and I think she always will.

MMP: What brought you back to revive Diamond for Ahoy!?

Elise: If you can’t tell by now, I love this character, and I love her story. When I was asked if I’d be interested in bringing her back for a vocal performance, I just about cried. There is no one thing about Diamond that I can pinpoint that caused my reaction. It’s more about who she is and what she stands for. She is all of the confidence I wish I had and strive to have. She takes chances and risks and makes change happen for herself, and I love that.

MMP: How did you select your songs for this new show?

Elise: “Anything Goes”

Director Daniel Stallings approached me with this song when he asked me to revive Diamond LaPore. He was greatly inspired by the musical of the same name while writing Ahoy!, and I wanted to help make his vision come to life. Once I saw Ahoy! during dress rehearsal, I understood why this was the song he chose. Every character in Ahoy! is full of wonderfully absurd quirks. From “embroidery,” as Lana Lovelace calls it, to malapropism to eccentric actresses to robbery and murder. This show has anything and everything you could hope for. Hence, “Anything Goes.”

“Don’t Rain on My Parade”

We left Diamond at the end of Murder at the Red Fez as the life she had created for herself imploded, and I wanted to take the opportunity to continue her journey. I believe when we meet Diamond again in Ahoy!, she has made a name for herself and will not jeopardize her passions for anything. Which is why I chose “Don’t Rain on My Parade.” This song is about joy and passion and not letting anyone put you out. It’s also an incredibly challenging song, and I wasn’t sure I was ready to sing it. But again, sometimes we just have to do it scared.

MMP: What have you taken from the experience?

Elise: A large part of why I wanted to sing again, and chose these songs, is because I wanted to prove to myself that “fear is but a precursor to valor”. Yes, I am quoting DreamWorks Trollhunters, because it’s true. “Don’t Rain on My Parade” specifically requires the singer to have that courage and joy and passion. Without it, it’s not the same song. I have new confidence in myself because of these songs. The cast of Ahoy! has renewed my love for comedy and reminded me of how important it is to find and spread joy in our world of uncertainty. That’s what’s so amazing about theatre and art. It is a uniquely human experience that connects people across the world.

MMP: What do you like about working with MMP?

Elise: I like working with MMP because of the community it has built. The productions are cast and run in such a way that there are always opportunities for growth as an actor, techie, director, or whatever area of theatre you are interested in pursuing. The people are great, and every production that I have been a part of has been fun.

MMP: What roles would you like to sing in the future?

Elise: My dream role would be Eurydice or Persephone in Hadestown. There is something so profoundly beautiful and devastating and hopeful about this musical, and Eva Noblezada is one of my role models in theatre.
I’d also love to perform as Esmerelda in The Hunchback of Notre Dame. This is one of my favorite Disney movies, and the stage production is even more beautiful. There are plenty more that I could go on about for hours, but I’ll leave it at those two. For now, I will continue to grow my voice and I look forward to performing in the future.

A luxurious setting. Glamorous gowns. Twinkling jewels. Fine food and drink. And now jazzy rhythms filling every nook and cranny of the S.S. Americana. Sounds like a perfect cocktail for mystery. There’s only one more weekend left to enjoy this exceptional comedy from MMP. Ahoy! closes this Friday and Saturday at 7:30 p.m. at the Lloyd E. Frost VFW Ship 4084 (117 N. Alvord St.).

We’d hate for you to miss our maiden voyage. Join us for a night of laughter (and maybe a little larceny). Tickets are sold here.

We’ll see you at Ahoy! Bon voyage!

–Master Mystery Productions