It was SRO under the tent this summer when performers from the Maine State Music Theatre (MSMT) twice delighted audiences at The Highlands with their marvelous singing ability. As they do every year, cast members from the shows playing at Bowdoin College's Pickard Theater came in June and again in August to impress enthusiastic residents, families and friends with their rousing renditions of show tunes.
In June, the show playing was Hans Christian Andersen, and in August, Smokey Joe's Cafe, two very different, yet equally memorable, musicals. At The Highlands, performers sang number from these shows as well as from Jekyll and Hyde, Ain't Misbehavin', Fiddler on the Roof, Oliver, and Brigadoon.
Some of the performers had a special connection to The Highlands. Sixteen-year old Amanda Choate, for example, who sang "Inchworm" from Hans Christian Andersen with another young woman, is the granddaughter of one of the residents. Accompanist and performer Birdie Katz, a perennial favorite who this year sang a duet from Fiddler, has in-laws who are new residents of Cadigan Lodge.
Following the performances, guests enjoyed a superb lunch. In August, they dined on either shrimp Louis or chicken Waldorf salad prepared by the Dining Services Department, a feat unto itself since more than 300 people attended each event.
Resident Lois Wilcox, a devoted fan of MSMT, had season tickets this year and saw all four shows at the Pickard in addition to the performances at The Highlands. "Every show was different in its own way," she reports, "and I was really entertained. We have such an advantage living here, because the van makes it so easy for us to get there."
The Highlands has been a sponsor of the MSMT for 12 years, and a season sponsor for eight.
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