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The students of the Uptown Music Collective presented its recent show, "Captain Fantastic and The Piano Man: The Music of Elton John and Billy Joel," to a sold-out audience in the 2,200-seat Community Arts Center.
Filling that theater was a first for the 14-year-old collective.
"We had seen the ticket sales rising, and when it passed our goal of 1,500, we celebrated," Dave Brumbaugh, executive director, said in a news release. "When it hit 1,700, we were stunned. As it closed in on capacity, we were all in disbelief, expecting the sales to stall, never expecting it to keep going all the way up to a sellout."
The Jan. 25 show, sponsored by the Williamsport Sun-Gazette, followed suit in the collective's theme of classic rock-centered shows.
Before performing on the CAC stage, the collective played Pink Floyd songs at the Quality Inn that was in South Williamsport, as well as Woodstock and other classics at the Loyalsock Middle School auditorium and the Howard Theater at the Masonic Lodge.
UMC performed a "theatrical" rendition of Pink Floyd's "The Wall" for its first performance at the CAC, paired with a wall 30 feet wide and 9 feet high, made out of cardboard boxes. The show was directed by the current marketing director, Jared Mondell.
"At first, we felt like the stray dog invited into a rich family's home. However, over the first series of shows, the crew and staff made us feel truly welcome and encouraged us to see the CAC as our home -- an honor we have never taken for granted," Brumbaugh said in a press release. "A great relationship was born that has lasted for 14 years and 40 different performances."
The audience that supports shows presented by UMC students has continued to grow over the last 10 years. In 2012, when the collective performed the music of Queen, the CAC needed to open its balcony for the first time, seating 1,000 total. In 2018, when the collective performed 70s rock and roll, 1,900 people showed up over the two-night run.
"The loyalty to our program, our students and the performances is unique and humbling," Mondell said.
"We greatly appreciate the support that our audience shows for our students and our programs. Our success is their success and we are grateful," Brumbaugh said.