Newly-crowned Miss America Cassie Donegan is a New York native, but she has ties to the Cumberland County Playhouse from her college days.
Playhouse Producing Director and CEO Bryce McDonald said Donegan was the narrator for the company’s production of Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat in 2019. McDonald said her voice and talent are outstanding, but she is best remembered for her personality.
“I just remember she was a bright light in a room at all times,” McDonald said. “That’s quite enjoyable when you’re directing a show or producing a show to have someone who’s that joyous every time is quite special.”
McDonald said Donegan’s laugh and instant connection made her a pleasure to be around. McDonald said she was also passionate about the work that went into the production.
McDonald said the first time he saw Donegan perform was at a Nashville area musical in 2018. McDonald said he instantly knew she was special. McDonald said the Playhouse got in touch with her a year later for an audition, and the directors loved her instantly. Donegan was a student at Belmont University at the time.
McDonald said Donegan’s role as the narrator carried a heavy vocal load and the responsibility of kicking off the show. In other words, Donegan was in every scene and rarely left the stage.
“Her presence alone along with her personality, she just lit everything on fire for us,” McDonald said. “So you couldn’t help but be drawn to her. So when she first opened her mouth in those first few notes of the number, you could just see the audience audibly respond to her.”
McDonald said there is a lot of carryover between the pageant world and musical theater, McDonald said in both disciplines, participants need to have confidence and comfort on stage. McDonald said the way actors use their body as an instrument on stage translates well to pageants.
“The training you get in musical theater helps lead into that because there’s a talent portion,” McDonald said. “There’s the active wear. You have long hours in Miss America, not only on the show, but the whole week leading up to it. And theater builds you up for that because we do long hours. We are always on stage. We’re always on for everybody.”
McDonald said he thinks Donegan will be amazing as Miss America, and in watching the pageant, it looked like she was made for it. McDonald said she will walk into every event and draw people in. McDonald said Donegan is a great spokesperson for the Miss America platform, and will be a great role model for a lot of people she meets.
