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LEWISTON — For the third year in a row, a cast of Poland Spring Inn summer cabaret performers, who also happen to be favorites at L/A Community Little Theatre, will bring a show that celebrates the hits of the ‘60s and ‘70s and warms up a cold February night, to L/A’s Gendron Franco Center.
“From Bandstand to Billboard – Off the Record” is a fun, and sometimes romantic, collection of big hits from Billboard Magazine and American Bandstand, from the 1960s and 1970s. The widely acclaimed show will appear at L/A’s Gendron Franco Center in Lewiston at 7:30 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 25.
Most of the cast and some of the orchestra have been part an ensemble of local talent that has performed in a series of very popular musical revues at Poland Spring Inn for several recent summers. The widely acclaimed productions include, “Welcome to the Sixties” which was performed before a sold-out Franco Center audience in 2015 and the first installment of “Bandstand to Billboard in 2016. The revised and expanded “From Bandstand to Billboard – Off the Record” features seven local singers and actors: Eileen Messina, Michael Litchfield, Gerry Therrien, Duane Glover, Renee Mahon Davis, Sophie Messina and Center Director Mitchell Clyde Thomas, as the announcer.
The cast will be accompanied by a talented all-star band, including: music Director Paul G. Caron; Mike French on guitar; Shane Davis on bass; Mark Fredericks on percussion; Mike Plossay and Mike Trucheon on trumpets; Bruce Theriault on trombone; Blaise Spath on reeds; Linda Vaillancourt on viola; and Alex Wong on cello.
All of these musicians are well known throughout Maine and have played in many LACLT pit orchestras, in countless other community, high school and professional theatrical productions (including Maine State Music Theater), in symphony and community orchestras, community bands, and in ballroom and wedding bands.
From doo-wop to disco is the theme. “As the country went through major changes in this time period, we looked toward music and entertainment to help see us through,” said Mitchell Clyde Thomas, the Center’s executive director and the announcer for the show. “Big Bands and vocalists gave way to this new thing called rock ‘n roll, as well as the Golden Age of country, folk, psychedelic rock, and the rise and fall of disco. We are so happy to welcome back this talented ensemble for a night of great entertainment!”
The show is directed by Eileen Messina, whose directing and performing record is endless, having directed CLT shows for more than 20 years and performed in shows there since she was a child. She is the daughter of veteran CLT directors/actors, Richard Rosenberg and the late Mary Glen Rosenberg. Messina’s daughter Sophie, an Edward Little High School senior, is joining the cast on stage for the first time in the 2017 show. She already has an impressive theatrical résumé, having appeared in several CLT and ELHS productions.
The rest of the cast, Litchfield, Glover, Davis Therrien and Thomas, have all been in countless CLT productions and many other community theater shows, from Monmouth, to Portland, Rumford, the Oxford Hills, and more. Michael James Litchfield performed professionally in New York and Glover is a well-known local improvisational actor/comedian. All have appeared on the Franco Center stage before, several as part of the cast of the annual gala and benefit concert, “Songs of the Silver Screen” this past October.
Band leader and pianist, Paul G. Caron, is very well-known for his musical and artistic directorships at CLT. He and the Franco Center’s Richard Martin were co-writers of “Lewiston, A New Home” and he will direct the upcoming production of Gypsy at CLT. He was music director for the sold-out November production of Chicago and the summer’s hit, Disney’s Beauty and the Beast.
The very popular show in the magnificent performance hall sold out the past two years and probably will again on Feb. 25. Reserved tickets are $15 each, $12 for seniors (60+), and students are admitted for free. The Dolard and Priscilla Gendron Franco Center is handicap accessible. The doors and the bar open for a preshow reception at 6:30 p.m. and the price of the ticket includes on-site parking at the Continental Mill on Oxford Street.
For more information and to purchase tickets, contact or visit the Box Office (46 Cedar Street in Lewiston) or purchase on-line at www.francocenter.org. Call 207-689-2000. Box office hours are Monday thru Friday, from noon to 4 p.m.
