“That successful effort certainly shines forth as the highlight of my high school days.” – yours truly about playing Rose in “Bye Bye Birdie” in 1964, the first musical performed in Columbia City High School’s Newell Rice Auditorium. 55 years later, Columbia City High School brings “Bye Bye Birdie” back to the CCHS stage this November as the farewell musical for the current building.

“With the combined efforts of musicians, dancers, drama enthusiasts, stage managers and light-ing technicians, the Senior Class of 1964 presented Columbia City’s first musical comedy, Bye Bye Birdie,” reads the article from the Columbian, the 1964 yearbook of Columbia City Joint High School.
Be prepared to put on a happy face as, 55 years later, Columbia City High School brings “Bye Bye Birdie” back to the CCHS stage this November as the farewell musical for the current building. A cast of more than 35 students will act, sing and dance their hearts out for audiences on Friday, Nov. 15 and Saturday, Nov. 16 at 7:30 p.m. in the Newell Rice Auditorium.

Set in the late 1950’s, “Bye Bye Birdie” is a romantic musical comedy revolving around the incredible popularity of Conrad Birdie (Ray Barrand), an Elvis-like rock & roll star who’s being drafted into the Army, which puts his publicity agent and songwriter Albert Peterson (Jack Claypool) into something of a pickle. Peterson’s sweetheart, Rosie (Sidney Basham), comes up with a last-ditch nationwide publicity scheme to get Conrad on to the Ed Sullivan Show and plant a lucky last kiss on a teenage fan before heading off overseas. When Kim MacAfee (Ella Kirchner) of Sweet Apple, Ohio wins the honor, all the telephones in her small town ring off the hook, and the entire town reels with anticipation. Kim’s boyfriend, Hugo (Daniel Booker), can’t take the humiliation of his lady love’s televised lip-lock. Rose can’t take another minute of Albert’s distracted ways. And Sweet Apple can’t take its teens’ riotous rebellion, inspired by the arrival of bad-boy Birdie. Will Sweet Apple ever be the same?