Oxford’s theatre community takes to the stage once again, to sing, dance, and receive the recognition they deserve.
The Oxford Capitol Theatre was singing again, quite literally. Saturday evening, the venue was packed with members of the community, proud parents, and the many cast and crew members from the 2025–26 season of musical theatre, as awards were handed out to deserving recipients. The spectacle kicked off with a reprise of the cast of the Taylor Swift Tribute doing “Shake it Off.”
The Town of Oxford’s Municipal Physical Activity Leader (MPAL), Marion Abbott, has transformed the Capitol Theatre since coming into the job a year ago. With her background in musical theatre, the responsibility of managing the theatre and bringing new opportunities for would-be actors was taken up with gusto. As Abbott mentioned in her opening remarks at the Awards Night, the 2025–26 season saw the Capitol host “five shows, 24 performances, with 16 technicians, 64 cast members, 91 songs, and engaged just over one-thousand audience members.”
Abbott herself directed and provided musical accompaniment for all of those shows. She credits the success of the past season to the contributions of many volunteers and organizations:
“I want to thank the Oxford Regional Education Centre for bringing students to see live theatre; the Sunset Thrift Store for their incredible ongoing generosity; and the Town of Oxford for their incredible support.” The Sunset Thrift Store provided all of the costumes for the season’s shows.
Recognizing the support of many individuals was the focus of the evening, beginning with certificates of appreciation for Chris King Tower, Dot Pal, and Charla Smith MacPhee.
Abbott noted that the theatre was in rough shape a year ago, and credited three people with having a lasting physical impact on the building: Parker Archibald helped clean out decades of accumulated junk (and the occasional dead animal) from under the stage and other nooks and crannies of the building, taking approximately eleven truckloads of garbage from the site; Keegan McClary, who worked as the Recreation Department’s summer student in 2025, painted and improved the condition of the dressing rooms and backstage area, as well as painting the foyer and other tasks; and Scott Nowak, who provided technical advice and support. A plaque recognizing their contributions is the first to go up on a “Wall of Fame” located at the rear of the Capitol Theatre balcony.
The awards were presented throughout the hour-long event, interspersed with performances by the casts of all five shows from this season.
Certificates were awarded to: Augustus Monast, Leyla Monast, Oscar Monast, Railynn Cann, Julia Meadows, Sofia Sánchez, Amber Brewer, Macy Legresley, Gabriel Admiral, and Madi MacPhee.
Tech Award: Max Brown
Offstage Gems Award: John Beaton, Ashley Edwards
Stop The Show Awards: Catie Powell, Sarah Brown, Olivia Sarty, Scott Nowak
Supporting Roles Awards: Jonah Cormier, Amber Brewer
Leading Roles Awards: Cali Taggart, Alisha Bourque
Phenomenal Growth Award: Anna Pal
Photos from the 2025–26 Oxford Capitol Theatre Awards Night:
The event was catered by Big B’s Variety, with ice cream and a candy bar at the door. Trophies were sourced from Carter’s Sports Cresting. The trophies were sponsored in part by Margaret Abbott, in loving memory of Doug Abbott.
