Staff Writer
PRESQUE ISLE – The spotlight is ready to shine on students from seven Maine schools Friday and Saturday as Presque Isle High School hosts the Regional Drama Festival.
Contributed photo
ZACH FOWLER (Figaro) and Kori Kinney (Susannah), members of the Presque Isle High School Shipmates’ Playhouse, rehearse the opening scene of “The Marriage of Figaro,” the one-act play they will perform this weekend as PIHS hosts the Regional Drama Festival.
Over 3,000 students from 79 high schools will compete in nine regional competitions as part of the 78th annual Maine Drama Festival. Two winners from each regional competition will be selected to advance to the state finals March 20-21. The festival is sponsored by the Maine Principals’ Association and the Maine Drama Council.
“Typically, schools volunteer to host,” said Jennifer Bourassa, host director and director of the PIHS competition play. “Presque Isle High School has not hosted the event for eight years, so we felt it was our turn!”
While hosting the festival is a lot of work, officials say it is well worth it.
“It is important to bring the festival to Presque Isle so that the community can attend the competition,” said Bourassa. “Oftentimes, we travel as far as Mount Desert Island for competition, so it is wonderful to be on our home stage and with a local audience.”
The Shipmates’ Playhouse will be performing a one-act adaptation of Beaumarchais’ “The Marriage of Figaro.”
“‘The Marriage of Figaro’ is an opera and is the sequel to ‘The Barber of Seville,’” said Bourassa. “This story focuses on the impending marriage of Figaro to Susannah. Both Figaro and Susannah work for the Count Almaviva. The Count is restless in his marriage to Rosina and is interested in an affair with Susannah.
“This play is the story of how Figaro avoids marriage with another woman, finds his long-lost parents, and foils the Count’s plans so that he can marry his Susannah,” she said.
The play was selected following the school’s harvest break.
“This gives the directors time to develop possibilities for set and costume design and to do research to develop the performance,” said Bourassa. “Auditions are held before Christmas break, so we have been rehearsing this performance since the third week in December.”
Community members are encouraged to attend the Regional Drama Festival.
“Attending the festival allows an audience member to see seven productions by seven different casts and crews,” Bourassa said. “There is a great variety of style and performance.”
Admission per day is $4 for high school students and under and $7 for adults (college students and older).
The performance schedule for the two-day event is as follows:
Friday, March 6
7 p.m. – Van Buren District Secondary School
8 p.m. – Caribou High School
9 p.m. – Presque Isle High School
Noon – Old Town High School
1 p.m. – Easton Junior-Senior High School
2 p.m. – Fort Kent Community High School
3 p.m. – Bangor High School
The event serves as a fund-raiser for the Music Boosters as they are in charge of all the food for the festival. T-shirts will be sold during the festival, and a local photographer will be taking pictures to compile a commemorative DVD photo montage for purchase.
For more information on the Regional Drama Festival, contact Eric Waddell, PIHS principal, at 764-0121.
Contributed photo
FIFTEEN STUDENTS from Easton Junior-Senior High School will perform “20 Reasons Not to be in a Play” by Alan Haehnel during the Regional Drama Festival March 6-7 at Presque Isle High School. The Easton Junior-Senior High School One Act Play cast includes, front row, from left: Katrina Martin, Ariana Babineau and Sam Bacon. Second row: C.J. Beaton, Zachary Clark, Sydney Trask, Taylor Burt and Jacob Bacon. Third row: Luke Budreau, Holden Turner and Jonah Bacon. Back row: Zachari Bourgeois, Samantha Fuller, Katie Cyr and Taylor Lawrence.
