'SpongeBob Musical’ makes a splash with Raymond audiences

By Briana Bizier

Over the weekend, the gymnasium at Jordan-Small Middle School in Raymond was transformed into a quiet corner of the ocean floor named Bikini Bottom as students performed the SpongeBob Musical. Returning director Tyler Costigan, along with choreographer Patricia Valley and music director Andrew Sawyer, had spent the past months leading the young cast and crew through blocking, dancing, singing, and the occasional forgotten line or cue.

Students at Jordan-Small Middle School in Raymond had fun
presenting the 'SpongeBob Musical' last weekend at the 
school. The production was a humorous song-filled visit
to Bikini Bottom and both Friday and Saturday's  
performances ended with standing ovations from
the audience. PHOTO BY BRIANA BIZIER 

On Friday night, the excitement was palpable as the cast pulled on colorful costumes designed by Cloey Osborne of Clover’s Home Creations, complete with tights, wigs, and even a massive burger costume and an inflatable pufferfish outfit. “I feel like I’m wearing one big sock,” one actor said after struggling into his bright red tights.

Backstage, the young crew sorted through a vast array of props, from a remote-controlled snail to an Avalanche Maker 3000. Led by stage managers Rosa and Sabby Shamaoun and crew manager Stella Redmond, students Olivia Beal, Eli Dulude, Myra Hammond, Joel Mbayagu, Jordyn Morris, Molly Redmond, Cash Salazar, Eva Salazar, Elyse Silvia, Madison Smith, and Grayson Valente somehow managed to keep everything organized, even completing backstage costume repairs with a hot glue gun and tracking down an ice pack after a cast member suffered a minor injury. Tech director CJ Payne and a team of volunteers from Windham High School, including Erica Lin and JSMS alumni Ari Green and Lucy Payne, checked microphones and prepared to run the lights for the show.

When Costigan announced the audience was arriving on Friday night, several cast members screamed. “How many of you are nervous?” Costigan asked. Almost every hand went up. Costigan told them not to worry. “You have a fantastic show,” he said. “It’s very you. And it’s going to be the same show you did yesterday, and the day before. Maybe even a bit better.”

With a last-minute reminder to make sure they knew where their props and costumes were, not to peek through the curtains, and not to eat cupcakes while in costume, the directors and choreographer joined the audience, leaving the play in the hands of the young actors and stage crew.

As the curtain rose on a beautiful Bikini Bottom day, narrator Ian Bizier introduced the titular yellow sponge, played by an enthusiastic Alison Largay, his best friend Patrick Star, played by Rian Borella to great comedic effect, and SpongeBob’s gloomy, artistic coworker Squidward, played by a fantastically morose Allie Lebourdais. 

SpongeBob and Patrick greeted their friend Sandy Cheeks the squirrel, played by a cheerful Ashling Feeney with a very convincing Texas accent and her cowfish friends, played by Ariel Sampson, Grace Gillies, Olivia Gurney, Rylee Odom, and Ella Jacobson. After singing a catchy song about being BFFs with Patrick, SpongeBob headed to work at the Krusty Krab.

Played by a very convincing Marley Hebert wearing custom-made crab claws, the owner of the Krusty Krab, Mr. Krabs, told his adopted daughter Pearl, played with fantastic adolescent angst by Acadia Vingers, that she’ll be the manager of the Krusty Krab once she graduates. But Pearl announced through their powerful duet, “Daddy Knows Best,” that she has dreams of her own.

This Bikini Bottom day was suddenly interrupted by red lights and rumbling. Perch Perkins, a reporter fish played by a very dramatic Zoe Decker, announced that Mount Humongous the volcano is about to erupt. The end was nigh and the plot was set in motion.

Bikini Bottom’s mayor, played by a stately Mikel Gilbert, called an emergency town meeting and asked for ideas about how to prevent the catastrophe. Patrick suggested that everyone just close their eyes, winning him the admiration of a school of sardines, played by Araia Peterson, Ella Moreau, and several ensemble members doing quick costume changes.

On the other side of the stage, Plankton, the owner of the Krusty Krab’s rival restaurant Chum Bucket, played with a perfect evil laugh by Lauren Inman and his computer wife Karen, played by Alexa Largay with a lot of digital attitude, plotted to find a way to turn this threat to their advantage. After discrediting Sandy’s plan to use science to stop the volcano and turning the fish against her, especially Old Man Jenkins, played with an excellent hobble by Haylee Irish and a belligerent Larry the Lobster, played by Alice Thibodeau in a muscle shirt, Plankton announced his dastardly scheme in a catchy song and dance called “When the Going Gets Tough” that featured the entire cast and is probably still running through audience members’ heads.

With the villagers either filled with terror, including a screaming fish in a crabby patty costume played by a perfectly panicked Grayson Waisanen, or preparing for the upcoming fundraiser concert featuring the Electric Skates, SpongeBob decided it was up to him, Patrick, and Sandy to save Bikini Bottom, singing the song “Hero is my Middle Name,” although the adoring sardines pulled Patrick away by singing that he was their “Super Sea Star Savior.”

Meanwhile, the Electric Skates arrived in town to practice the “Bikini Bottom Boogie.” Played by Aiden Carroll, Arlo Keane, and Ben LeBel, these rock stars placed ridiculous demands on Squidward, smashed their instruments, and got some huge laughs from the audience. When one of the Skates told Squidward he can’t play on stage with them, Squidward chased the band away and then sang the hilarious and surprisingly moving “I’m Not a Loser.” 

On Mount Humongous, SpongeBob and Sandy sang “Chop to the Top” as crew members moved blocks for them to climb, creating authentic suspense. Plankton and Karen attempted to interrupt their progress by firing the Avalanche Maker 3000 from deep within the audience, but Patrick came to their rescue. SpongeBob dropped Sandy’s Eruption Interruptor into the volcano, the volcano erupted in bubbles instead of lava, and the entire ensemble gathered once more to sing “Best Day Ever” and perform a final rendition of “Bikini Bottom Day.”

Both Friday and Saturday’s performances ended with standing ovations and several surprised comments from fellow audience members about how professional the Jordan-Small students looked on stage. Backstage, as the curtains fell, the young actors ran into the cafeteria screaming and hugging. “We did it,” they shouted as their friends and family gathered in the hallway to congratulate them. “We actually did it!”

SpongeBob might even say it was the best day ever. <

WHS students explore morality in upcoming play competition

By Dina Mendros

Windham High School’s one-act play entry for this year’s Maine Drama Festival will challenge audiences to reflect on morality, as 25 students bring the classic work “Everyman” to the stage next month.

Windham High School's cast of 'Everyman' gather following
a rehearsal at the school. The late 15th century English
morality play will be directed by CJ Payne and is the
school's one-act play entry for this year's Maine Drama
Festival which will be presented at South Portland High
School on March 6 and March 7.  COURTESY PHOTO    

The cast – supported by student crews handling backstage operations, sound, and lighting – is preparing the late fifteenth‑century English Catholic morality play under the direction of Christopher (C.J.) Payne.

Some 69 schools across Maine will compete at eight regional sites on March 6 and 7. Windham High School will perform at South Portland High School, while WHS itself will host the state festival for advancing teams on March 20 and 21. The New England Drama Festival will follow at the Paramount Theatre in Rutland, Vermont, from April 30 to May 2.

Payne, who became WHS technical director in 2009 and theater director in 2023, cited the long history of the event. 

"The earliest Maine High School One Act Drama Festival dates back to 1931 and was held at Bath High School,” he said. “Windham has a plaque in the trophy case showing our participation going back as far as 1961.”

The author of “Everyman,” written between 1490 and 1510, remains unknown. Payne describes the play as both humorous and dramatic, using symbolic characters, such as Death, Fellowship, and Cousin, to explore deeper questions of human morality.

“The play centers on Everyman confronting death, which rarely arrives welcomed,” he said. “Because it was written in Catholic Europe, it uses symbols audiences then and now can easily recognize to examine what makes someone a good person and what Good Deeds that they’ve done in their lifetime.”

This production marks a shift for WHS theater.

“The time period of the script is a big departure from the shows we’ve done in recent years,” Payne said. “And this will be the largest cast Windham has taken to the festival in the last five years.”

Junior Ashlynn Cuthbert is assisting Payne as student director. She joined theater in eighth grade and says it has become a major source of joy.

“My primary role is to be a second pair of eyes for our director,” she said. “I weigh in on everything from costumes and sets to acting choices and blocking. CJ and I work together to make the show as powerful and seamless as possible. One of my favorite parts is helping other actors develop their characters.”

Cuthbert appreciates the collaborative nature of the production. “Every detail is discussed and sometimes debated until we find the best option,” she said.

Working on a script originally written in Middle English has also taught Cuthbert some valuable lessons.

“I’ve learned how important it is to truly understand and believe what you’re saying,” she said. “Bringing a character’s emotion into yourself is always important, but with this language, it’s even more challenging – and even more essential.”

She said that she hopes the performance sparks reflection.

“I don’t think it’s art’s job to tell an audience what to think or feel,” Cuthbert said. “Good art inspires people to have conversations with themselves about emotions and morals. I want our audience to leave contemplating what it means to be a good person—and, on a lighter note, thinking our show was really cool.”

According to Cuthbert, she plans to pursue law, specializing in prosecution or civil rights.

“It may sound far from theater, but both involve performance,” she said. “You’re standing in front of people, trying to capture their attention and take them on a journey. Both law and theater help people in different ways.”

Payne said he is excited to see what the students bring to the festival this year. “It’s rewarding to get students excited to perform for other schools,” he said. He chose “Everyman” because he wanted something different. “This show really fits the group of actors we have.”

The goal, he added, is always to deliver a production that exceeds expectations. “We hope to bring a professional‑level performance to the festival. Our actors and technicians always bring strong competition to the Class A sites. Hopefully the judges agree.” <