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One probably doesn’t expect Cass County to be a mecca for the arts but it kind of is.
From the visual arts that pop up across the downtown area to the singing choirs tucked away in cavernous high school music rooms, the county is full of any kind of art you may want.
Art had a big impact on the county in 2023, from Tim and Susan Cahalan saying goodbye to the Logansport Children’s Choir, theater performances that pulled every emotion from the audience and the Lewis Cass Marching Kings continuing their legacy. The Pharos-Tribune even launched a Logansport Arts Guide, which can be picked up in the office.
The upcoming year will be another magical time for art in Cass County as theatergoers prepare to say goodbye to a talented group of seniors, Caston High School eyes a comeback of their theater program and more visual art is sure to pop up within the community.
But before looking forward, let’s look at a few magical moments from 2023.
“Here’s to song”
A legacy 35 years long came to an end in 2023 when Tim and Susan Cahalan stepped away from the Logansport Children’s Choir.
Their final time leading the choir on May 21 was an emotional night inside the McHale Performing Arts Center. Over one hundred alumni came from all over the country to honor the Cahalans and sing with the last group of members
The Logansport Children’s Choir began in 1988. Tim Cahalan started teaching within the Logansport Community School Corporation in 1981.
During that time the Logansport Children’s Choir visited 11 countries and 26 states. There have been 1000 members and over 550 songs performed. Even Deputy Mayor Jacob Pomasl and his wife were members of the Children’s Choir.
“I believe that the Logansport Children’s Choir has been the premier youth organization in the region — if not in the state,” said Pomasl prior to the last performance. “What the Cahalans have built here and provided for local kids and families for decades is nothing short of remarkable.”
Days before the concert, Tim and Susan Cahalan received Crystal Berry awards for their service to Logansport High School.
The concert itself was a beautiful marathon of song and speeches, closing with the choir and alumni joining together for a tear-filled quartet of songs.
Fear not, the Cahalans are still mentoring many talented young people in Cass County. They shared their skills while singing Christmas carols at Black Dog in early December.
And while the Logansport Children’s Choir may be dormant at the moment, new Logansport High School music teachers Emily Brooke and Angie Ticen have built quick bonds with their students and hope to relaunch the choir once they get a handle on their teaching duties.
On the stage
Cass County theater is an amazing thing.
The year saw Logansport High School perform the historical drama “Radium Girls.” The play tells the story about factory women who developed cancer due to their work painting watch dials with radium. It was heavy subject matter that the students delivered with the care and desperation it needed. In November, they wowed audiences with their hysterical and near-perfect production of “The SpongeBob Musical.”
Pioneer High School may not have the resources Logansport High School has but the students have heart and it shows on the stage. Anchored by Austin Brooke and Ellie Kitchell, the theater program did a spring production of “Big,” a musical based on the 1980s Tom Hanks film.
With a cast full of new faces, Pioneer performed “A Trip to the Moon” in November. A newer play made up of a series of vignettes that are set in 1969, it gave many students like Melia McIntyre and Maddie Schreyer an opportunity to show what they are capable of while still letting Kitchell and Brooke do what they do best. The cast was able to pull together and put on an entertaining and thoughtful show.
The Civic Players of Logansport performed the raucous and bawdy “Rock of Ages” this summer at the State Theatre, the first time the troupe had performed a musical in the venue. A jukebox musical made up of glam metal songs from the 1980s, the cast had audiences both singing and laughing.
The Civic Players also said goodbye to popular characters Lottie and Bernice while performing the duo’s last play, “Lottie and Bernice Livin’ Large.” Played by Lorien Stair-Spicer and Becki Harris, Lottie and Berniece won over local fans through five different plays.
The Civic Players return Feb. 2-4 with the murder mystery comedy “Murdered Again.” Another jukebox musical featuring the music of Queen is in the works for the summer.
Finally, the Junior Civic Theater delivered a beautiful performance of “The Sound of Music” this summer. Logansport High School student Kelsey Thomas stole the show with her powerful rendition of “Climb Ev’ry Mountain” and Austin Brooke had the audience laughing as the smug and rakish Max Detweiler.
“The Sound of Music” was the last local performance by the talented Gracie Kitchell, who is now a freshman member of the Singing Hoosiers at IU. Still, most of the cast will return next summer for the JCT production of “Newsies.” However, many of those performers will head to college afterward.
Cass County has state championship level talent when it comes to high school theater. If the performers were throwing a football or swishing three-pointers, they would have sell-out audiences.
Go watch and support these talented students while you can. See them at their high schools and see them this summer at McHale. Each and every one of them deserves to perform for a packed house.
You won’t be disappointed.
Adding to the collection
For the second straight year, the Lewis Cass Marching Kings were announced as the runners up in Class D on Oct. 29 at the 2023 Indiana State School Music Association Marching Band State Finals at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis.
There’s no shame in a runners up trophy and the Marching Kings worked hard to get there.
“This group is one of the most hardworking groups I think I have had,” said band director Alan Hinshaw before the band’s final practice heading into state. “Even tonight, right now they are doing parts of the show before we even start practice. They are stretching and warming up. They just wanted to get out here early and start working.”
The Marching Kings competed with a show that was symbolic of where the band stood. They call the performance “Crossroads” and it was inspired by the Robert Frost poem “The Road Not Taken.”
“Our show is about making sure you choose the right path and I feel like it’s very fitting to me because I’m like ‘did I do it right? Did I choose the right path?’ I hope this tells me the right answer,” said senior Nora Craw.
This was the 41st trip to the state finals for Lewis Cass. It has won 10 state finals, with the last coming in 2021.
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