Houlton native wins
2013 Northern Star competition
Aroostook Republican Photo/Lisa Wilcox
2013 Northern Star group winners, Dan Rooney, left, and Josh Doughty of rock group Rooney & the Revolvers.
Aroostook Republican Photos/Lisa Wilcox
THE NORTHERN STAR 2013 SOLO CONTESTANTS, from left, Cory Stanley, Amira Abouleish, Megan Ouellette, Emily Marin, Allyson Plummer, Brandon Clark, Haven Rhoda, Keegan Fitzpatrick, Krystal Turton and Heather Rose await the results of the audience vote for the top two finalists and the judges’ pick during the grand finale of the competition.
JOVIAL JUDGES — Northern Star 2013 grand finale judges Michelle Beaulieu, Jay Nelson and Annie Charles offered their opinions and advice to the contestants.
ALLYSON PLUMMER of Washburn, a 2013 Northern Star contestant, performed “Oh Darling” by The Beatles in Sunday’s finale.
JASON PARENT and Claudia Stevens exchanged good-humored banter as they hosted the 2013 Northern Star grand finale for United Way of Aroostook at CPAC in Caribou on March 17.
By Lisa Wilcox
Staff Writer
CARIBOU — There was a full house at the Caribou Performing Arts Center on Sunday afternoon as friends, family and fans of the solo and group contestants in the United Way of Aroostook’s 2013 Northern Star competition gathered to watch their favorite act perform in the grand finale and determine the ultimate winner.
Three 2013 Northern Star shows had been held in Houlton, Presque Isle and Fort Kent two weeks earlier with the top three solo performers and group winner from each competition eligible to perform in the grand finale. A mix-up regarding a Houlton contestant who didn’t think they would be able to attend the finale, but then were able to, added an additional contestant to the mix.
Finalists’ ages ranged from 13 to 27. The competition was open to all of Aroostook County, from Fort Kent to the Houlton area, and Carleton, Victoria and Madawaska Counties in New Brunswick. Last year’s winners, soloist Megan Ouellette and group The Triplets, both of Canada, were on hand to perform and turn over their titles to this year’s winners.
The judges for the finale were Michelle Beaulieu of Fort Kent, Jay Nelson of Presque Isle, and 2007’s Aroostook Idol Annie Charles. Claudia Stevens of the United Way and Jason Parent of The Aroostook Medical Center were hosts of the show.
The program began with a performance from all of the solo contestants of the Owl City and Carly Rae Jepson song “Good Time.”
The soloists then performed.
•Cory Stanley, 26, of Fort Kent, performed “Off My Rocker” by Billy Currington.
•Amira Abouleish, 15, of Houlton, performed “Turning Tables,” by Adele.
•Megan Ouellette, with the same name as last year’s winner, 26, of Van Buren, sang “Anyway” by Martina McBride.
•Emily Marin, 13, of Fort Kent, sang “Titanium” by David Guetta.
•Allyson Plummer, 27, of Washburn, sang “Oh Darling” by The Beatles.
•Brandon Clark, 19, of Houlton, sang “Feeling Good” by Michael Buble.
•Haven Rhoda, 15, of Houlton, sang “California King” by Rihanna.
•Keegan Fitzpatrick, 16, of Houlton, sang “You Raise Me Up” by Josh Groban. Keegan dedicated his performance to his mother for her birthday.
•Krystal Turton, 23, of Fort Kent, sang “Stay” by Sugarland.
•Heather Rose, 27, of Caribou, sang “Halo” by Beyonce.
Each contestant was critiqued by the three judges after their performance and the audience was able to cast their vote for their favorite to determine the top two. Rose and Ouellette were chosen by the audience, and the third finalist, Clark, was the judges’ selection.
The three groups then performed.
•Siblings Alex and Anabelle LeMieux, 13 and 14, respectively, of St. Joseph de Madawaska, New Brunswick, performed “Little Things” by One Direction.
•Dan Rooney, 24, and Josh Doughty, 27, of the group Rooney and the Revolvers, sang an original song, “Take Me Back.”
•Fitzpatrick returned to sing with Stevie Shaeffer, 16, and Jackie Condon, 15, of Houlton. The group performed “Just the Way You Are” by Bruno Mars.
The audience was then asked to cast their vote for their favorite group.
As the votes were collected, campaign co-chairs Tim Doak and Wanda Guiggey informed the audience that the Northern Star, formerly Aroostook Idol, competitions have raised $3.8 million during its eight-year existence with funds going to such organizations as Santa’s Sleigh, Dress a Child and the Cash Coalition, among many others.
The group contestants and 2012 group winners, The Triplets, then performed “Lean on Me” together after only having rehearsed for the first time earlier in the day.
Ouellette, Rose and Clark then performed their final songs.
•Ouellette performed “Cowboy Casanova” by Carrie Underwood.
•Rose performed “Someone Like You” by Adele.
•Clark performed “I Who Have Nothing” by Tom Jones.
Votes were then collected from the audience to determine the solo winner. As the votes were tabulated, judges Charles and Nelson performed “The Prayer,” which brought the audience to their feet for a standing ovation.
Winners were then announced with Rooney and Doughty taking the group competition and Clark winning as soloist.
Clark, a student at New England School of Communications, has been competing in Aroostook Idol/Northern Star since he was 13. He is only the second male to win the competition with Dashawn Russell, a University of Maine at Presque Isle student, winning in 2011.
This was the first time Rooney and Doughty competed. Their five-member rock band, Rooney and the Revolvers, are based out of Presque Isle and perform locally.
Top three finalist Heather Rose is married to Phil Rose and they have two children together, Liam and Isabelle. Rose had competed in Aroostook Idol during her sophomore year in college, but found her singing had to take a back seat once she got married and had children. Rose is also is an avid knitter and hopes to be able to return to singing on a more regular basis.
Stevens said she was pleased with the outcome of this year’s Northern Star and estimated the event to have raised approximately $23,000 for United Way of Aroostook.