RESS COLUMBUS —The historic Stafford Opera House in Columbus had a full house on May 7, when several hundred people attended another celebration for the Columbus bicentennial birthday. The gathering was a birthday party with a play, a beautiful cake, and a punch! The play was appropriately titled, 'Happy Birthday, Columbus!' It was set as a fifth-grade classroom with students giving reports about the history of Columbus and some Texas history. It featured local actors such as Mayor Lori An Gobert as the principal, Dr. Kirk Anderson as the superintendent, and Mark Candela as the teacher. The fid - gety and silly fifth-grade students were played by Ann Butler, Ester Chandler, Gary Chandler, John Crews, John Isbell, Shirley Isbell, Steve McCullough, Kathy Salguero, James Yearwood, and Bob Stiles with his dog, Beamer.
Columbus’s very own Nancy Stiles wrote and directed the super cute dialogue. Also, Darrel Appelt and Phillip Brummett of Columbus played some oldies to set the scene before the start of the show. Brennan Jobe from Rice High School's theatre arts department coached and advised the cast and crew throughout the process.
The play was entertaining, taught about Columbus' history, and concluded with Bob Stiles and the cast leading a sing-a-long.
