Middletown High School students over the weekend weekend performed “Almost, Maine,” a whimsical drama set in a fictitious rural town in Maine. The play consisted of ten vignettes that carried the audience through the comical, awkward and sometimes dark experiences that are associated with love.

Thirteen actors portrayed the journeys of 20 characters as they discovered love or experienced the realization of its loss, each time when they least expected.

Glory, played by Shannon Hugard, found love when she payed her respects to her deceased husband in a stranger’s backyard. She carried her broken heart in a bag.

Phil and Marcie, played by Andrew Stinson and Lydia Bosch, realized they lost their love when Lydia's missing shoe dropped from the sky.

The play's rural setting provided a quiet backdrop against the eccentric personalities of the characters and the threads of magic the author John Cariani wove into the scenes. 

“The most difficult part of this play, is there are many ways to interpret one line,” Jack Broderick, who played three roles, said during dress rehearsal. Broderick said he identified his characters’ personalities through rehearsals and feedback from family and friends.  

The students rehearsed every Monday and Wednesday since February for the big production over the weekend. After the final show on Saturday, the cast and crew celebrated with a pizza party.   

Cast (in order of appearance): Dan Bertel, Maggie Kerins, Andrew Stinson, Shannon Hugard, John Cunha, Michelle Fennewald, Jackie Tollefson, Jack Broderick, Julia Chille, Cecilia Costello, Lydia Bosh, Rebecca Costello, Justice Miller

Credits:
Written by John Cariani; directed by Kevin Zahm; production stage manager, Deejay Connerton; lighting by Lydia Burns; sound by Sage Salve; stage crew, Tyler Maitland, Gunnar Rice and Isaiah Robinson; Tickets/Snacks, Izzy Macomber, Molly Hawes, Andie Cave, Kelly McLaughlin, Gunnar Rice, Isaiah Robinson and Chris Vaillancourt.