Odyssey of the Mind regionals elicit students’ creative best

ELLSWORTH — Who said vaudeville is dead? Certainly not the students who juggled, joked, sang songs and cavorted on makeshift stages Saturday as part of the regional competitions for the Odyssey of the Mind.

Hundreds of elementary, middle and high school students from around the state competed in the OM regional tournaments, which not only challenged them intellectually, but also put their creativity to the test.

They were competing against each other and against the clock to see who would go on to the state OM meet next month, and a chance at the world finals later this spring.

Five regional competitions were held in the state this weekend, including the one in Ellsworth, for the eastern Maine area of Penobscot, Washington and Hancock counties, and at the University of Maine at Presque Isle for the northern Maine region of Aroostook and Piscataquis counties.

The participants, who call themselves OM-ers, have been working for months in teams from their individual schools to solve specific, and often unusual, problems.

Some teams, for example, had to construct 8-inch-high structures out of balsa wood that could withstand heavy weight. This particular problem also required the teams to perform skits during the competition.

Others had to come up with and operate a creative way to sort and transport domestic and foreign mail and packages.

And in the vaudeville problem, students had eight minutes in which to hold a show featuring three or more original acts, an emcee and an original commercial. One of the acts had to relate to a positive issue in society, such as reycling or cleaning up the environment.

At the Dr. Charles C. Knowlton School in Ellsworth, students plunked down hefty suitcases on the cafeteria floor. From them came colorful clothing, large bow ties and other props the students would need for their acts.

One vaudeville show put on by students from the George B. Weatherbee School in Hampden featured Curley Temple. During her brief spot, Ms. Temple flaunted a red boa and sang a song about her love of trees and warned of the impending loss of forests whose trees are being cut, exported and manufactured into products.

“Don’t give them a vacation to a foreign destination,” she sang.

In the OM competitions, the students separated into three divisions based on grade level, ensuring that similarly aged students were competing against each other.

First-place finishers in the regionals go on to the state competition to be held April 1 at the University of Maine.

Here are the first- through third-place results of the eastern Maine regional competition:

In the “Scientific Safari” category: Division I: first, Bryant E. Moore Middle School, Ellsworth; second, Connors-Emerson School, Bar Harbor; third, Mary Snow School, Bangor; Division II: Lamoine Consolidated School; D.W. Merritt School, Addison; Garland Street Middle School, Bangor; Division III: Ellsworth High School; and Machias High School.

In “The Mail Must Go Through,” Division II, first place went to the Holdbrook School, Holden.

In “New Twist” category: Division I: the G. Herbert Jewett School, Bucksport; and Brooklin Elementary School; Division II: Dedham School; Garland Street Middle School; and Glenburn Elementary School.

In “Time Traveler” category: Division I: Mary Snow School, Bangor; Glenburn Elementary School; and Cherryfield Elementary School; Division II: Holbrook School, Holden; Milbridge Elementary School; and Orland Consolidated School.

In the “Classics” category, featuring the vaudeville acts: Division I: Weatherbee School; Columbia Falls Elementary; and Mary Snow School; Division II: Bryant E. Moore School; Samuel Wagner School, Winterport; and the John R. Graham School, Veazie; Division III: John Bapst High School, Bangor; and Ellsworth High School.

At the northern Maine competition at UMPI, the winners were:

“Scientfic Safari,” Division I: Wildcats Program, Presque Isle; Woodland Consolidated School; and Teague Park School, Caribou; Division II, Easton Elementary School; Caribou Middle School; and Tiger Enrichment Program, Fort Fairfield.

“Mail Must Go Through,” Division II: Fort Street School, Mars Hill; Division III: Presque Isle High School.

“New Twist,” Division I: Caribou Middle School; Ashland Central School; and Bridgewater Grammar School.

“Time Traveler,” Division I: Caribou Middle School; the Greater Houlton Olympians; and Wildcats Program; Division II: Central Aroostook High School, Mars Hill; the Tiger Enrichment Program; and the Greater Houlton Olympians.

“Classics,” Division I: Easton Elementary; Tiger Enrichment Program; and the Greater Houlton Olympians; Division II: Houlton Southside School; Gateway Elementary School, Van Buren; and Limestone Elementary School; Division III: Washburn High School; and Easton High School.