Maggie Anderson
by Mary Kroszner

Grits is defined as “coarsely ground hulled corn boiled as a breakfast dish in the southern United States” In more recent marketing and advertising campaigns “GRITS” is synonymous with t-shirts and bumper stickers that proclaim “Girls Raised In The South” As a girl raised in the south who happens to consider grits an important breakfast staple, I was delighted to recently meet singer, dancer, actress and fellow North Carolinian, Maggie Anderson.

Maggie Anderson moved to North Carolina when she was five. Her parents, college professors and her step-father, a Presbyterian minister always encouraged her to strive to make a difference with her talents and life within her community. So just how does a girl from North Carolina end up on stage in New Hope, PA?

During Maggie’s high school years, Joni Mitchell’s inspiring and message carrying music helped Maggie define her own musical interests. After high school she considered traveling to London’s West End to study theatre. Instead, she chose to attend Elon College, a liberal arts school in NC. A musical theatre major, she toured as a singer with the jazz band, performed as lead in every role, took formal voice training, and studied dance technique.

Another inspiration came during a summer semester abroad in Calcutta where she met Mother Theresa and worked in an orphanage for a week. The discipline she developed during this time helped earn her one of only two nationally awarded scholarships for graduate studies and a Master of Fine Arts degree from the Cincinnati Conservancy of Music two years later.

“ If you need someone else to tell you you’re good, you won’t make it, you have to hold the undying belief on yourself that you have the right stuff.” With this personal motto, dedicated training and discipline, Maggie left for New York in 1998. Fresh off the U-haul her first audition for the long running Broadway production of CATS was unsuccessful, and made the necessity of a day job reality. Using the resources of the yellow pages, she fortunately landed three dance instructor jobs.

Six months later it was a “streetwise” return to open casting calls; agents and casting directors weren’t helpful friends - often only ladders of rejection everyone must climb for success. Life soon became a weekly scouring of “Backstage,” 5 AM casting calls with 500 girls and a six-hour wait for a 30 second audition. Maggie found balance, hope, and support through her family, audition friends, and dance students.Luckily, she was able to work consistently and received good reviews, regardless of how well the show did.

Her break came with The Foxy Ladies Love Boogie-The 70’s Explosion, a Greenwich Village project that was scheduled to run for one month but quickly became a cult hit that lasted two years. Since that exposure, Maggie has been on daytime TV in As the World Turns, experimental theatre, regional work, summer stock, corporate musical productions, and celebrity benefits.

Life’s next inspiration came during the summer of 2001 when Maggie met singer/songwriter Gregg Cagno. It was love at first sight and they were married last May. New Hope has always been a special place for both of them. They had their first date and later became engaged here. In September 2002, they followed their hearts and returned to New Hope where they are now both working locally. Combining their musical loves and skills they recorded and released a Christmas CD last year, Simple Gifts, which is available at Farley's Bookshop and at www.greggcagno.com.

Gregg continues to write and play his acoustic music, performing regionally and at New Hope nightspots such as Havana. Next week he will perform at the Birchmere in Alexandria, VA opening for 70’s folk rockers America. Maggie again found herself with lead roles, this time at the Bucks County Playhouse this past summer and currently this fall. Smokey Joe’s Café opened for 2 weeks on September 24th and she will play Cassie in A Chorus Line and Dorothy Brock in 42nd Street in November/December.

With a perfect blend of great shows, performing in good roles, and a wonderful family-like community, Maggie Anderson has come full circle as a singer, dancer, and actress, making a difference with her talents and life within her new community. Don’t be surprised to see her name on the marquis for some time to come at the Bucks County Playhouse. Bravo!