"You're the one that I want..." Review of "Grease" by Michelle Libby

Grease premiered last weekend at the Windham Town Hall as the summer show of Windham Center Stage Theater. The upbeat musical keeps your toes tapping from the opening song to the final number. 

The ensemble cast is incredibly talented and no one person stole the show, although Kenickie played by Anthony DeRice doing backflips was pretty awesome. 

The show Grease is the story of young love set in the backdrop of Rydell High in the 1950s. It answers the question if summer love can survive through the school year. 

The cast of 25 consists of students in junior high to adults from Windham, Gorham, Portland and Raymond. Giovan Corsetti plays Danny Zuko, Allison Sample plays Sandy Dumbrowski (which was not her last name in the movie.) Other cast members were Patrick Martin as Doody, Nathan Bachner as Sonny and Andrew Shepard as Roger. The pink ladies were Rizzo played by Molly Olsen, Shelbi Wassick as Frenchy, who had more wardrobe changes then a 6-year-old playing dress up, Dimitra Corsetti as Marty and Alexandra Gordan as Jan. Patty Simcox was Casey Hutchinson. “This is one of the most fun roles I’ve ever had to play,” she said. Eugene was played by Morgan Brann. The casting was amazing and from the acting could remember who the character was from the movie, but the actors made each person come alive on the stage in their own personal way.  

The show is directed by Laurie Shepard, no stranger to theater in the area.

“The show is classic Grease. We do the show justice,” she said.  The cast began rehearsals in June and have put in hundreds of hours of work, according to Shepard. 

Shepard has been helped by her team of producer Mnemosyne Heileman, musical director Robert Chabora, choreographer Abigail Worthing, property mistress Patrice Foley-Olsen, set builder Ed Haibon, lighting designer Michaela Denoncourt and costume designer Pat Hutchinson. 

“This is my dream show,” said Shepard, who wrote a 50-page paper on the play while in school.

Small updates have taken place from boys being in the beauty school to tweaks in the script to make room for the ensemble cast. “Everyone has their moment,” Laurie said. 

“Laurie brings humor to (directing). She’ll show you how to do it if you’re doing it wrong,” said Julia Hills from Windham. 

Jaydie Allen plays Chacha and this is the tenth production she has been cast. “It was the role I wanted. I’ve been a competitive dancer since I was three,” she said. “I’m really thrilled to be in this show.”

Destiney Starkey is in the ensemble. This is her first show. She was inspired to try out for the show when she saw Footloose three years ago. “I love Grease,” she added. 

Windham Center Stage Theater does not own their own theater, so they use the one at the Windham Town Hall, but are directly affected by the town’s schedule, so the show is only running two weeks total. 

Andrew Shepard plays Roger, one of the T-birds. His favorite part of the play has been all of the down time with the cast. “Who doesn’t love Grease,” he added. 

DeRice (Kinickie) said, “I have always loved the movie. This whole time era of the show is awesome. Older folks, even the young kids will enjoy it. It’s fun. It’s a classic.” 

One of the most controversial parts of the play, that might make it more of a PG rating, would be the fake smoking and swearing on stage. It was the time, according to Shepard, who wanted to make sure the show was as authentic as possible. Each actor who has a cigarette has permission from a parent or guardian to use the prop. If a child has seen the movie, they’re fine to see this play.

 

Local woman plans year service trip to Uruguay - By Michelle Libby

Most college graduates being the arduous task of finding a job in their selected field after graduating, but Kirsten Lowell, 24, of Windham gave up her good paying job in Pennsylvania for the opportunity to travel to a foreign land and learn the culture and language. 
 

“It kind of landed in my lap. I’d been talking about doing a year of service,” Lowell said. “I’d love to learn a new language and live in another country.” 

In February, Lowell was approached by Jane Hartwell, an employee of the Episcopal Diocese of Maine, asking if she’d ever considered service work abroad. Hartwell sent Lowell the information about Young Adult Service Corps (YASC) even though the deadline had passed. 

“I went to New York for an interview and discernment. It sort of all tumbled into place. It was a God moment,” said Lowell. 

When asked during her discernment where she would like to go, was connected to or interested in, she said, “Anywhere.”

In March YASC told her she’d be a good fit for Uruguay, but she didn’t hear officially until May.

“I always wanted to work in the legal field or with a non-profit, but clearly that’s not what I’m doing,” she said with a chuckle. 

Once she heard about her placement, she told her family, friends, drafted a support letter, set up her blog and spoke with Rev. Tim Higgins at St. Ann’s Episcopal Church in Windham, which would be her sponsor for the trip. Lowell was baptized and confirmed at St. Ann’s and she is still very involved in the church and the Episcopal diocese, including organizing youth events that she once attended. 

“YASC is the Peace Corps for one year through the Episcopal Church,” Lowell said. 

Lowell has to raise $10,000 to fund her year stay. After she raises the first $5,000, YASC will buy her plane ticket to Uruguay, which is in South America, and then she will be given a leave date. She’s excited for that to happen. She said she has sent out some support letters asking for money from her family, friends, friend’s families and through church. She has raised approximately $3,000 to date. 

“I still have quite a ways to go,” she said. YASC will provide the housing for Lowell, who knows she’ll be staying in a condo in Montevideo, the capital city. The hardest part will be adjusting from rural Maine to city life, she said. There are 1.5 million people in the capital city alone. She will be working with the Anglican Diocese of Uruguay doing administrative projects, organizing their archive room, creating a newsletter and doing outreach. She plans to spend three months traveling to the interior visiting local parishes. She will be the first YASC volunteer to travel to Uruguay, she said. 

She will be given $500 a month to live on while she’s there. That money will be used for travel, food and everyday expenses, she said. 

When asked if she was nervous, she shook her head. “I don’t have any fears. It feels so right that this is what I’m called to do. Once I’m down there, I’ll be afraid of things, but I can’t worry about that now,” she said. 

Lowell spent two weeks in New York, the headquarters for YASC, with 15 other volunteers doing orientation. She made friends and plans to meet with the woman staying in Brazil since they will be only nine hours apart. 

Lowell took a few years of high school and college Spanish, but she’s not too concerned. “Once I’m immersed in the culture and language, I’ll be fine,” she said. She will enroll in a language school once she is there. “I want to learn how to surf, tango, do traditional dances and learn about their music,” Lowell said. 

She expects that living in Uruguay will change her in some ways. “It’s about forming relationships. I have to express my emotions and gratitude in another language, to do that in our native language is hard sometimes.”  

Lowell has strong faith and will rely on God’s help and support during her year abroad. She plans to bring love with her, God’s love, her love and to learn from them. “It’s not necessarily what I’m going to bring to them, but what they will bring to me,” she said. 

Lowell graduated with a degree in political science and a minor in legal studies from Eastern University in St. David’s, Penn.

“The way I changed and the relationships I formed in those two weeks, I can’t imagine what a whole year will be like,” she said. 

Lowell is still taking donations. She estimates that the $10,000 works out to be $30 per day. If someone donates $30, she will do something intentional with that person in mind on a day they select and she will check in with them. Checks can be sent to St. Ann’s Episcopal Church with Kirsten Lowell, Uruguay in the memo, 40 Windham Center Road, P.O. Box 911, Windham, Maine 04062. The other way would be at www.gofundme.com/94jfy0 

Lowell has launched her blog at kirstlowell.wordpress.com.

Hangin with Slugger...

The Windham Police Department Honor Guard presented the colors for the Portland Sea Dogs on July 22. Officers involved in the color guard were Officer Brandon Ladd (Rifleman), Officer Eugene Gallant (American Flag), Officer Jason Burke (State of Maine Flag), Officer Steven Stubbs (Law Enforcement Officer's Memorial Flag), Officer Robert Hunt (Rifleman) and Commanding Officer Sergeant Jason Andrews (rear of formation). Submitted photo.

Microtel Inn & Suites well under construction on Route 302 - By Elizabeth Richards

Construction has begun on a new Microtel Inn & Suites in Windham, with an anticipated opening date at the end of 2014. 
 

The project has been a long time coming. Erik Heyland, owner of Heyland Development, has owned the property since 2007. At that time he had been approved for a Microtel, but pulled back when the recession hit. Though he said they looked at alternate brands for the project, those didn’t fit the model like the Microtel does for that property. When financing was once again secured for a Microtel branded hotel, the project was up and running. “We think that this is going to serve a larger segment,” said Heyland.

In today’s market, Heyland said, guests are more savvy. They can research hotel brands online, read reviews, and have certain expectations for their stay. Because Microtel is a standards-based brand developed by the Wyndham Hotel Group, there are quality assurance scores the property must hit every year to maintain their franchise status. Customers may be more reluctant to stay in smaller, independently run motels if they can’t do their research, said Heyland. “We think in the Town of Windham this sets us apart from whoever else is in that space,” he said.

The hotel will attract a broad customer base, and span a variety of needs, including leisure traffic, visitors to Saint Joseph’s College, and business travelers, said Heyland. The hotel will also have extended stay accommodations, with small refrigerators and microwaves, for people with temporary housing needs. The building in Windham is a new prototype, which will offer an updated, fresh look in the décor, said Heyland. 

Christmas of 2014 is the targeted opening date for this first phase, which includes 58 rooms with queen sized beds, an indoor pool, fitness center, lobby area, free breakfast and a business center. The property will also offer trailer parking for those with boats or snowmobiles, and bus parking. Heyland said an expansion plan to bring the hotel to 74 rooms is already in place. He hopes to have the second phase completed within 18 months of opening.

Though the permit process was lengthy, Heyland said the Town of Windham has been very cooperative and helpful throughout the process. “They are excited about this project coming in. I’ve heard many times that this is an overdue project,” he said. 

 Tom Bartell, Executive Director of the Windham Economic Development Corporation, said that the project will fill a void in the region. There has been a lack of a branded hotel that can be part of a national reservation system, he said, and this project “fills that niche very nicely.”

Bartell said he’s heard from area businesses that when employees visit from outside of Maine, they have sent them to Portland, South Portland or Westbrook because there wasn’t a hotel of this type in Windham. He’s also heard from residents that when they have people come to visit them, there hasn’t been a place for them to stay. 

“The summer season is very full,” Bartell added. “It’s hard to get a space.” Camps and cottages fill up quickly, and in the winter, many are closed, he said. “[The Microtel] is a great asset that we are going to have,” he said. “I think it will be well received.”

Though there might be some concern from owners/operators of other accommodations, Bartell said the Microtel is really a different model, and will attract a different customer base. 

Heyland currently operates a Microtel Inn & Suites in York, Maine. Heyland said construction has been moving quickly and drawing attention. He has been receiving requests from people wishing to book rooms for next year. Reservations for the Windham Microtel can be booked now by calling the Microtel Inn & Suites in York, also managed by Heyland Development. The number for reservations is 207-363-0800.

WHS leads the way with proficiency-based education - By Michelle Libby

Windham High School principal Christopher Howell has been working with his staff for the last three years to get ready to implement the proficiency-based grading and diploma requirements that were supposed to go into effect last year and will be implemented at WHS this fall. 
 

All eight content areas have been thoroughly evaluated as to how this grading system will work with the curriculum. The content area are math, English/language arts, social studies, science, health and physical education, career prep, foreign language and visual and performing arts. 

According to Howell, every lesson was looked at to see how it would help students to meet the standards they need to pass a class and ultimately graduate from WHS. 

The school has been working with Great Schools Partnership and Angela Hardy was brought on as a coach from Great Schools to help with the implementation and connect the staff with resources they need. 

“She tells us we’re wrong if we’re heading in a direction we don’t want to go in,” said Howell. The cost of implementing the new system is $30,000 of a $40 million budget, he said. That money is used to pay for Hardy and her 20 days on site contract as well as teachers who work over the summer to continue development of the standards.  

One issue they have looked at is how to do this in the high school system so it meshes with what is happening at the middle schools and primary schools in the RSU. 

“The demands on high school is different from college or middle school,” said Howell. Colleges, employers and technical schools may or may not be familiar with what proficiency education is all about, he added. To that fact, WHS will continue to use number grades in addition to the proficiency-based system. “High school is the end of the line. We are certifying that (the student) met the standards,” said Howell. 

Although a student may meet all the standards that are set before him and he is able to graduate, that minimum requirement is not enough to market him, said Howell. Students will need to go above and beyond the required performance indicators to be ready for college or technical school. 

Higher education schools want to know what are the courses you took. So there will be two transcripts. One that is course based and one that shows the number grades. What exactly the course based transcript will look like is yet to be determined, Howell said, but he did say that attendance will be on the new report cards as well as student’s work habits. WHS is aware that the average student gets five minutes on the table at a college, so they want to work with that. 

The biggest impact will be on teachers, Howell said. Teachers will keep track of the grades and standards electronically through specialized programs created just for this. 

“There is transparency of the curriculum. Here’s what’s truly important. It has forced us to look at what we do and what we teach,” Howell said. 

Many high schools in the state have yet to start any type of evaluation of their curriculums to align with the new state mandated system, said Howell. WHS has been asked to be a model for other schools.

“We are being recognized as being leaders in this work,” Howell said. By mandate, schools must implement proficiency-based education in some form by 2020. 

Howell was also involved at the state level as one of three principals who were asked to help create the extension deadlines. Extensions were granted, however that will not stop WHS from proceeding forward. “I don’t think anyone feels like their ready, but they feel like they’re on the right track.” 

The content areas are identified as to what the standards are and the performance indicators are written. The students will have more opportunities to make up work and get ahead in classes with the new grading. It’s multi-aged schooling, which WHS is already doing, said Howell. Students will be allowed to double up in English classes or take online or adult education courses to demonstrate the mastery of certain standards. 

“They have to earn it,” said Howell of the proficiency-based diploma. 

To parents the way things are reported won’t look much different, he said. It’s how the information is collected and developed that will change. Although parents might be given more reporting on how their students is doing in relation to the standards. WHS will continue to use Infinite Campus. 

The RSU school board will hear all of the work done by Howell and his staff in the fall. “The School board should have the opportunity to discuss this publically,” said Howell. “The community should be proud of the work the teachers have done here.”