A drama troupe from Cape Elizabeth High School is among 17 Maine schools that will compete in the 2015 one-act Maine Drama Festival state finals, March 20-21.

During last weekend’s Class A regional tournament at Freeport High School, a group of students from Cape Elizabeth performed “The Dishwasher,“ a short story by Robert Garner McBrearty, adapted for the stage by Maine director Aynne Ames. The play features a college graduate who works as a dishwasher at a diner and desperately wants to believe that his job is glamorous and prestigious in the public eye.

“It’s a show that’s been on my mind for (30) years,” said theater director Richard Mullen. “This year, it was the right people and the right time; so I went with this very unusual, experimental, edgy kind of show. It’s unique and original. It’s very fast-paced.”

According to Mullen, regional judges recognized students Cole Amorello, Ryan Wallace, George Astor and Robert MacKay for their “outstanding” performances. Cape Elizabeth High School also received kudos for its “outstanding” set design and costumes, Mullen said.

Other Class A schools advancing to the state finals include Bangor High School, Camden Hills Regional High School, Falmouth High School, Fryeburg Academy, Skowhegan Area High School, Waterville Senior High School and Windham High School. Class A will compete in the finals at Bangor High School, while 10 Class B schools will compete at Stearns Junior-Senior High School of Millinocket the same weekend.

One school from each division will be chosen to compete at the New England Theatre Festival, April 23-25, at Camden Hills Regional High School in Rockport.

-Kayla J. Collins

Students in the Cape Elizabeth Theater Department pose for a photo at the Q-Street Diner in South Portland in February while practicing for their one-act play “The Dishwasher,” which they will perform at the state finals in Bangor, March 20-21. Photo courtesy of Jenny Campbell