FARMINGTON – The Mt. Blue Theatre Company held its annual end-of-the-year banquet on May 16. Students gathered to reminisce about this year’s theater season and celebrate the seniors’ accomplishments over the last four years as well as award senior honors. There was a potluck supper, a slide show, and an open mic night to commemorate the occasion. The theatre company had a full season of plays starting in the fall with the quadrennial favorite, The Curious Savage. Several former cast members were in attendance to see the latest version of this heartwarming play.
This year the company traveled to Skowhegan for the one act play festival. Senior Finch Webster wrote a parody of a high school play production with their show, “One and Done” for which they won a judges’ award. When the cast performed the show here, the middle school also performed “Fifteen Reasons Not to be in a Play” and the faculty performed, under the direction of sophomore Rhett Sexton-Burchfield, “The 39 Steps Even More Abridged.” Finally the company ended the year with their crowning achievement, the Disney musical “Beauty and the Beast,” their first full blown musical in several years.
The Student Playwright/Director award was given to Finch Webster for their show “One and Done.” This comedy concerned an overbearing and unrealistic theatre director (Liam Dorr) absurdly bestowing all the roles in a play upon one student actor (Kylie Hall) who valiantly tries to play them all! Finch was successfully able to write, cast, and direct the show, even using ideas from next year’s potential one act as Easter eggs in their show. Finch also received one of the “Senior Theatre Awards.” As a senior, Finch has held the role of Theatre Mom this year, a position they take very seriously. They are definitely one of the key leaders of the group, treating the company like a family. Finch has been involved with MBTC since their freshman year, first featured in the production of “Almost, Maine.” Since then they’ve thrown themselves into acting, culminating with their performance of Mrs. Potts in “Beauty and the Beast.” Finch plans to attend Monroe College in New Rochelle, New York in the Baking and Pastry program next fall. Their repertoire of theatre games, their commanding voice as well as their kindness, openmindedness, and advocacy for all will be missed at Mt. Blue.
The second “Senior Theatre Award” went to Zander Larriviere who also has been around since freshman year–starting with the student-written one act play “Wrath.” Both Finch and Zander had to contend with theatre in the time of Covid and yet, they both managed to stick with it and were able to adapt when necessary. Zander began his theatrical stint backstage working with lights and sound. Last year he stepped in front of the lights as Colonel Mustard in “Clue,” a production performed outside in the courtyard. He’s appeared in every show since his initial role on stage peaking with the role of the Beast in the musical. Zander’s calm and kind demeanor were key in his role as “Theatre Dad” this year–he’s a leader and a liaison, someone for the underclassmen to emulate. Zander plans to attend UMF next year.
Deb Muise said, “Other seniors who will be leaving the company are Finn Zimmerschied, our lighting guru for 4 years, and Leticia Tsujiguchi, an exchange student who sang her way into our hearts in Beauty and the Beast. We wish many broken legs to all of them!”
Stay tuned for next year’s season. The Mt. Blue Theatre Company’s first show will be a comedy in early November!
