From high school theater to trusted colleague – the years-long friendship of Elizabeth Gibbs and Marguerite McKean

By Luna Flores ‘26

Left photo: Present-day Marguerite and Elizabeth. Right photo: Elizabeth and Marguerite in their senior year of high school. Courtesy of Marguerite McKean.

Few know that Upper School science teacher Marguerite McKean and Upper School theater director Elizabeth Gibbs used to be Margie and Lizzy. Sometimes they still slip up, in the kind of light conversation they were having as I watched them prepare for their interview.

The two are often seen around campus together, whether walking in the quad, working on the musicals, or leading C&C. Funny enough, a little over 20 years ago, Elizabeth and Marguerite were still doing just that (though luckily, they had advisors who led their own C&Cs).

As Elizabeth stated, “I don't have a memory of the first time we met, I just kind of remember you always being there.” With Marguerite first coming to the Catlin Gabel School (CGS) in ninth grade, and Elizabeth boasting the “Lifer” title, they likely first met sometime in freshman year.

Marguerite recalled the first class she truly remembered having with Elizabeth in the Upper School, “I distinctly remember taking sophomore history together.” Often sitting together in class, Marguerite began to make a routine out of taking notes for Elizabeth, who would be gone “because you were doing 5,000 things,” Marguerite added, a reference to Elizabeth's busy schedule with outside-of-school theater commitments.

Smiling, Marguerite turned to Elizabeth, “I’m going to say a thing,” she said, prompting Elizabeth to raise her eyebrows in intrigue. Laughing, Marguerite stated, “The Peacoat Mafia."

Elizabeth put her head in her hands. “Oh gosh,” she exclaimed as Marguerite further explained the origin of this high school group name. “This involved several of our friends,” Elizabeth continued, “We [Elizabeth and her friends] all had the same coat.”

They recalled that around four people had the black version, while Elizabeth had the red coat, and so in turn, “they became dubbed, lovingly, the Peacoat Mafia,” Marguerite remarked through giggles.

Adding to how they first got particularly close, they both agree they have the weaving studio to thank.

Marguerite explains, “Before the [Upper School] library got built, there was a building called the Crossroads.” Making a face of disgust, Elizabeth immediately added, “it was so gross.” But, due to the relocation of the sophomore lounge, which resided in this building, it officially became a weaving studio space, and consequently, where their friend group would hang out.

Marguerite and Elizabeth both set the scene for this space, “One of us would be doing textiles pretty much at all times. Somebody would be threading a loom,” Marguerite recalled, with Elizabeth adding, “Someone else would be downloading tunes on Limewire.”

Going into their junior and senior years, their friendship grew even more tight-knit as they became student leaders in choir, took the playwriting and directing class that put on the One Acts festival (still alive to this day, though with no class attached), and navigated the CGS theater department together.

Photo of Elizabeth (left) and Marguerite (middle) in Little Shop of Horrors, their junior year musical. Photo from the 2002-03 CGS Yearbook.

In Elizabeth and Marguerite's senior year, they took the advanced playwriting and directing class, “and we decided to put on a musical, and it was….” Marguerite sheepishly trailed off. Elizabeth laughed, “Exactly, the director at the time didn't like musicals very much…So we decided to piece together our own musical, just putting all the songs that we liked, and then coming up with a plot.” Marguerite smiled, “That was horrible!”

They both made remarks about how they were used to challenges, especially since they were practically left in charge of their junior year musical. Marguerite explained, “we had a choreographer who was the head of school, so she was very busy, and Elizabeth became dance captain very quickly.” As for the music director, Marguerite exclaimed, “he had wanted to have nothing to do with it [the musical] and basically told me you've got this.”

Elizabeth and Marguerite are also C&C leaders together, and have been joyful leaders for a few years, “we share a common language" said Elizabeth. She added, “Marguerite teaches science and I teach theater, and we kind of come at things from different angles, so we can help people with different kinds of problems.”

Tia Bailey ‘26, a member of their C&C reflected on her own experience having them as advisors, “it just kind of feels like a little bit more of a family…their energy really seeps into the rest of us.”

When speaking about maintaining their friendship over the years, both Elizabeth and Marguerite explained they actually lost contact after high school. Elizabeth reflected on the benefit of their break, “I think having a bit of a break enabled us to see each other for who we are now and not just get stuck in our understanding of each other as high schoolers.”

Elizabeth added, “One of the things that I think works really well for us is that we have a lot of common understandings from when we were teenagers,” admitting that Marguerite often remembers more about their high school days than she does. Marguerite quickly quipped, “It’s just because I have a roach motel for a brain,” sending the three of us into laughter.

Marguerite affirmed that long-term friendships can be hard, but advised that you should always leave space to let one another evolve “while still holding on to what you love about somebody.”

Let their advice and wise words advise your own friendships, and remember, no matter where life takes you, it’s never too late to reconnect with someone from your past — and continue creating more memories together.