ROCKPORT — Whether it was ever in the back of the community's mind in 1999 or not, the Strom Auditorium at Camden Hills Regional High School in Rockport has been, by virtue of its design and wellspring for creativity, a place where students captivated by theater and performance have found their wings, either on stage, back stage, or in lighting and sound booths. Many of them have flown far, into careers on Broadway, on concert tours with Lady Gaga and Pearl Jam, or managing theaters.

It is no coincidence they fell into such jobs. They were educated and trained in theatrical production while at CHRHS, and encouraged to further their studies. Some went on to graduate school, others on the concert or stage circuit, developing more skills in America's cultural centers: Los Angeles, New York, Chicago, Nashville. They are now skilled professionals, and what do they report back?

It was their years immersed in performing arts at the Strom, with a supportive community of classmates, teachers and involved parents, that gave them a foundation to pursue individual success.

Ryan Shields, CHRHS Class of 2017, took a break from concert rehearsal in Nashville to join a late June Zoom call with Anna Grigo, CHRHS Class of 2011, and talk about their careers post-high school.

Shields, who is chief of lighting crews, was in the middle of prepping for a country music artist Thomas Rhett concert, and Grigo, a scenic designer and production designer, as well as costume designer for theater, opera and film, was in her office, gearing up for the production of A Christmas Carol that will open in December at the Perelman Performing Arts Center, at the World Trade Center.

They were joined in conversation by Rick Ash, former drama tech director and manager of the high school's Strom Auditorium. He was on the original 1999 CHRHS Auditorium Committee when the high school was under construction, helping with the auditorium’s design to become the community asset it now is.

Ash is helping to raise $730,000 for Strom upgrades, a three-year effort that is now underway. A previous effort initiated in 2015 reflects the ongoing intent to solicit donations from private funds for repairs and upgrades at the Strom, and take the financial load off of taxpayers.

Throughout the conversation with the two former students Camden Hills students, a contented smile filled Ash’s face as he listened to the professional adventures of Shields and Grigo.

Both had gone on from CHRHS to Ithaca College for undergraduate degrees, albeit five years apart, and expanded their own awareness of what constitutes a well-regarded theatrical space, and educational curriculum.

They keep in touch with their high school theater friends, and Shields said many have come to realize what a rich resource the Strom represented to them, as they explored the world of the performing arts.

"When they went to college, they were not disappointed, but surprised that some facilities were nothing compared to this," said Shields.

“Obviously we are not talking about Broadway space,” he said. “We are talking about a high school auditorium. But it had the space and the fly system, and you could figure out how to fly something on the counterweight system. It had all the major components of a larger theater, just not to the millionth degree.”

During the pandemic, Shields spent a year doing theater installations in upstate New York.

“I spent all of Covid driving around to mainly the high school theaters and doing renovations,” he said. “There were a couple that were equal, if not bigger, than the Strom, but in terms of the comparative size and flexible space, the Strom was at a high level.”

Grigo’s first Broadway contract to work on the stage production of Sweeney Todd was in a New York City theater that she had visited during elementary school to see Beauty and the Beast.

"I looked around and felt like I had been there before," she said. “It was a circle moment the Strom was part of, where there was a kid who was so transfixed by the magic of theater. I did theater in high school, wanted to pursue it so passionately, could not be told no, and then years later, I am standing in the Broadway house where I first witnessed the magic of theater. It was an incredible experience.”

She had quickly learned in high school that costume design would be her focus, and earned an award for best costume design for the production of Honk.

“I had a brief and painful tenure on stage,” Grigo said. “And then quickly found my way to costume design. It was like a lightbulb went off. I get terrible stage fright and I love the theater. I cannot remember my lines.”

She told herself, “Maybe this is something I could be good at.”

CHRHS's Visual and Performing Arts Department, includes theater, music and art. The Strom is where students participate in stage productions and produce their work for the community. The Strom was an integral component of the new high school construction in 1999, a huge undertaking for the five towns of Appleton, Camden, Hope, Lincolnville and Rockport, whose taxpayers funded the area's high school relocation from downtown Camden to a large parcel of wooded land on Route 90 in Rockport.

The nonprofit Friends of the CSD (the CSD Board of Directors comprising representatives from each of the five towns) oversees the high school) had helped to raise money for the Strom. In 1999, CHRHS had been the first school construction project in Maine to combine public and private funds to enhance the campus scope, and planners determined the Strom was to be the heart and jewel of that effort.

While Maine’s Department of Education planned an auditorium to seat just 350, the community raised money to expand seating at the Strom to 820 seats. The Strom opened in Fall 2001 with a production of The Sound of Music. 

Bay Chamber Concerts was involved in those early years at the Strom, and presented five events each year, "that were New York quality," said Ash. "They would send up a lighting plot that would involve getting 100 lights hung exactly where they needed them, so we were off with a bang."

"It wasn’t just ‘here is a theater that we do theater in’," said Shields. "It was, ‘here is a theater where we do theater and dance shows. I would hang out for the variety of events. I felt I lived there; that, and band. That all was what leapfrogged into me wanting to go to Ithaca.”

Shields attended Ithaca College in New York State during the pandemic years, graduating in 2022 with a bachelor’s of fine arts in production design.

"I moved to the Chicago area and worked for Upstaging, Inc., doing concert lighting," he said. "I have been there for four years, and am crew-chiefing a lot of large concert tours."

"Big names?” Said Ash.

"Lots of big names," said Shields. "Touring-wise, I started with Lady Gaga, Pearl Jam, Dead and Company. I spent two years doing James Taylor shows. Blink 182. And now Thomas Rhett. It all started with hanging a bunch of lights at the Strom Auditorium. Now I put on huge concerts all over the world, doing lighting."

“We have two alma maters in common," Grigo laughed. 

She also attended Ithaca, "and thought I only wanted to be a costume designer," said Grigo.

But she was introduced to set design, "and then three years later, while living and working in NYC, I pursued grad school."

Grigo earned her master's in fine arts in set design at the Yale School of Drama, and is now back in the City, working as scenic and costume design for productions at Lincoln Center, Second Stage and the Perelman Performing Arts Center.

"It is a such a strong network of kids who considered the Strom their second home," said Ash. "It was like a family. The fact that they had such a great venue to learn in that only helped that they were already having a good experience personally."

Nor do they forget the Black Box Theater, the small theatrical space in the back of the Strom.

"We would do shows on the auditorium stage that were bigger design opportunities, and then we could do the small plays in the Black Box space, which was another way of learning different ways to tell stories, like The Crucible," said Grigo. “That is one of the unique things not everyone gets. We had not just one performing space, but two, and we were tested in different ways."

CHRHS English teacher Jonathan Potter played a large part in getting the Black Box incorporated into the high school's theater department.

"He convinced the committee that they should have Black Box theater," said Ash. "I think they probably called it a classroom space to get it through the state funding."

Now, the effort is underway to make a series of improvements to the Strom, with a three-year fundraising campaign that aims to raise $730,000 by the end of 2028. So far, $140,000 has been raised.

The budget, as outlined in the Strom Fund case statement, includes the following expenditures:

Stage Curtains, $45,000
Stage curtains are torn and paint-spattered. Replacing the current curtains with new, safer, flame-retardant models enhances safety, reduces long-term maintenance costs, and ensures the auditorium meets modern industry standards.

LED Lighting and Master Controls, $250,000
The transition to LED lighting has begun with $119,500 of raised funds starting the transition. However, the majority of the lights are still incandescent fixtures. A faster transition to LEDs and an upgrade to modern lighting control systems is to reduce energy use and keep the Strom competitive, sustainable and equipped to support the highest level of student and community productions.

Stage Flooring, $50,000
The stage floor is reaching the end of its structural lifespan. The surface is painted and patched multiple times each year but that maintenance does not address nail heads and cracks that are hazardous to performers’ safety. To preserve the integrity of the performance space, the stage floor is to be replaced. 

Conversion to Mechanical Hoists, $200,000
Linesets at the Strom are aging counterweight systems that are physically risky and prone to imbalance. The goal is to replace with mechanical hoists to provide precise control, faster turnover, and establish a safer working environment.

Acoustic Shell, $35,000
The existing acoustic shell came from the Camden-Rockport High School, which was on Knowlton Street in Camden and has since been demolished. The shell poses a safety hazard since sections are cracked, hardware is missing, and support structures are bent. Setup and teardown are increasingly precarious. The shell is still used regularly for all choral and band concerts and is an essential piece of stage equipment. Replacing the shell is important for safety and high quality acoustics for the wide range of performances offered in The Strom. 

Replacement Pit Cover, $50,000
Routine use over 25 years contributed to the deterioration of the existing orchestra pit cover. It has been repaired and components have been replaced but the structure is damaged and can no longer be reliably maintained. Replacing the pit cover is another strategy to enhance safety in the auditorium. 

Repainting the Interior, $100,000

TOTAL BUDGET…… $730,000

Reach Editorial Director Lynda Clancy at lyndaclancy@penbaypilot.com; 207-706-6657