Theater veteran and 2008 Boothbay Region High School graduate Christopher Holmes pulled off an unusual tour de force last month. He performed off-Broadway the same night he became Mr. Maine, hundreds of miles away at the Taste of Maine in Woolwich.

Holmes, 23, competed in the question-and-answer portion of the Mr. Maine Challenge by cell phone from New York City. The high baritone tenor also sang in a prerecorded talent entry viewed during the March 24 charity event at the Route 1 restaurant.

Just before he went on stage in a production called “Cranky Cabaret” in New York City, organizers at the Woolwich event called him back and informed him he had won. “I had a surge of excitement. I didn't think I had a chance,” he said.

The Boothbay native wasn't in it for the glory. A friend participating in the Miss Maine program asked if he would take part in the fundraiser for the Children's Miracle Network.

He did it to help her and help a good cause, he said.

When he learned the date, he thought he would have to opt out due to his prior commitment in New York City. But organizers of the fundraiser worked around the problem. They let him participate on the phone and prerecord the talent entry.

The high baritone tenor sang a different version of a song he was already preparing to perform in the off-Broadway production.

The question Holmes said he had to answer over the phone was: “What do you want to be when you grow up?”

“I had two answers: work on Broadway as a stage manager, and become a physicians' assistant,” he said.

He is working toward both goals. The past winner of Maine State Drama Council awards (for set and light design and best actor in a comedy) directed Mulan Jr. at Studio 48 Performing Arts Center in Brunswick, and is currently directing Godspell Jr. for the New England Regional Theater Company. That production opens May 17 at the Winter Street Center in Bath.

Holmes, now of Bath, did lighting for the Carousel Music Theater in Boothbay Harbor in 2010 and 2011.

As for the medical career, Holmes plans to finish work on an associate's degree in biology, then go for a bachelor's. He works as a lab assistant at Miles Memorial and St. Andrews hospitals and as a patient services representative at the Mid Coast Center for Diabetes and Endocrinology in Brunswick.

Holmes is continuing to take pledges for the Children's Miracle Network. Anyone interested in donating may call him at 207-837-4540.

Susan Johns can be reached at 207-844-4633 or sjohns@wiscassetnewspaper.com.