Interdisciplinary artist Cory McAbee’s visit inspires students to create an experimental new project
Freshman Cecelia Tooley reflects on the experience of working with McAbee and shares about the Orwellian-themed performance art she and her classmates are creating.
Cory McAbee (center) works with students to build an initial structure for their project.
Interlochen Arts Academy welcomes many visiting artists to campus each year, but none of them are quite like Cory McAbee—a visionary who has made a career out of combining arts disciplines with individuality, ingenuity, and flair. Interdisciplinary arts students had the chance to work with McAbee in person as they brainstormed an original project. According to freshman Cecelia Tooley, the experience was deeply inspiring and just what she needed to prepare for future endeavors.
Writer, director, singer, and songwriter Cory McAbee
Cory McAbee is a writer, director, singer, and songwriter known for the feature films The American Astronaut and Stingray Sam, as well as numerous short films. He is also the creator of an international arts collaborative called Captain Ahab’s Motorcycle Club, which borrows its name from a character in Herman Melville’s classic novel Moby Dick. The project brought together filmmakers, illustrators, actors, and artists from around the world to create a crowdsourced storyworld and, in culmination, the feature film Deep Astronomy and the Romantic Sciences.
Under McAbee’s guidance, Interlochen students prepared to launch their own unique interdisciplinary project— George Orwell's Company Toy Store.
“ It’s a politically-inspired, satirical toy store constructed on Orwellian themes,” Tooley explains. “It’s interactive performance art, and the audience will get the experience of standing in line to wait for toys at the store. It's going to be super disorienting and keep people on their feet.”
Tooley appreciated McAbee’s guidance during the week, noting that the artist was both challenging and fun in his approach.
“ He's very good at helping us brainstorm—keeping that momentum going and letting us do our own thing—but also pushing us into different directions,” she says. “ Cory taught us to never take things too seriously or stay stuck in the same place for too long. You can always get back on your feet and think about things in a different way.”
In its finished form, George Orwell's Company Toy Store will be open to the public on December 5, 2025, as part of the Interdisciplinary Arts major’s Original Works show. Tooley is thrilled about the progress that’s been made so far, and she’s already anticipating how McAbee’s wisdom will shape her next project.
”Having Cory here to give us a formula for this project has been really helpful and grounding,” she says. “It's given me a basis for how to get from brainstorming to creating real, original work. I think I'll be able to implement that skill in my projects long after George Orwell’s Company Toy Store is done.”
Students at Interlochen Arts Academy enjoy world-renowned artistic training from gifted professionals alongside college-preparatory academics. Learn more about Arts Academy.
