Michael James Potashnick
10/7/58 – 1/10/11

Michael James Potashnick unexpectedly passed away on Monday, January 10, 2011 at the age of 52. The shock of his passing resonated throughout the entertainment community where he had spent his life making ours better. Larger than life, intelligent, positive, altruistic, dynamic, and giant teddy bear, are all ways his friends described him. His voice boomed, his laugh soared, his smile lit up everything around it, and his eyes could twinkle softly or pierce through you. He wanted to make everyone around him feel better and most of the time he succeeded.

Michael loved the performing arts. He loved his friends. He loved his community. He did some traveling but lived mainly in three different places that he called home: the Morrisville/ New Hope, Pennsylvania area while growing up, the Fairfield/ Bridgeport, Connecticut area are later on, and the greater Burlington, VT area during the last years of his life.

His career in the performing arts had two distinct sides that coincide with two separate eras of his life. At a young age and until his mid-20’s he was a star of the stage as an actor. Later he would become a production expert and compile an impressive resume of events and concerts he helped produce.

Growing up in Morrisville, PA he was only interested in two things, drama and girls. Michael had an amazing voice and even at a young age was a commanding presence. At Morrisville High School (1972-1976) he won the lead or second lead in almost everything he tried out for. Some of the highlights were roles in: Brigadoon, Oklahoma, Arsenic & Old Lace, Godspell, and _Me Nobody Know_s, for which he won an award.

In 1978 he went to Indiana University of Pennsylvania (IUP) as a Theater Major. There he landed the role of Cervantes/Don Quixote in the Theater By The Grove’s production of Man of La Mancha, played Yossarian in Catch 22, and King Oberon in Midsummer Night’s Dream. During the summer months, he would do summer stock at the Open Air Theatre in Washington Crossing with the Neshaminy Players where he wore many hats as: Director, Stage manager, Set designer, and Actor. He was in the musical Shennandoah, where he played the lead role of Charlie Anderson to many rave reviews and Jesus Christ Superstar in which a local drama critic wrote that, “Michael Potashnick, who played Judas, was the most commanding presence on the stage…..” Those that had the pleasure of coming into contact with him would not be at all surprised by that review.

By the time Michael was 24 he had performed in over 85 different plays and musicals, and had even made appearances on the soaps, General Hospital and Another World. His final production as an actor came in 1982 as the lead in Carousel at the historic Gateway Playhouse in Bellport, NY. He dedicated his performance of Billy Bigelow to his mother whose favorite show was Carousel.

He moved to Connecticut during the mid 80’s and worked as a bouncer and bartender in a club called Red Rocks that had live music. In the 1990’s he would go from a star of the stage to a supernova of backstage production professionalism, thus ushering in the second phase of his talented career.

He created, Mike P. Productions (originally called Dog Star Productions) and landed a job as Production Manager for the Globe Theater in Norwalk, CT, and became a member of the SoNo Arts Celebration. Michael began to develop a relationship with the city of Bridgeport and key community entertainment professionals. He also became a member of IATSE (Int’l Alliance Of Theatrical Stage Employees) during this time.

In 1996 he met and became an essential member of the Terrapin Presents and the Gathering of the Vibes (GOTV) team, a vast network of entertainment industry professionals that includes: musicians, promoters, production staff, stage designers, reporters, DJ’s, engineers, roadies, legends, agents, managers, and fans. GOTV is an annual festival that provided Michael with a way to help make tens of thousands of people’s lives better, a means to stay connected to the business that he loved, but most importantly it made him a part of an extended family.

He took his role as a key member of the GOTV family naturally and became brother to some, father figure to some, and that weird, crazy uncle to others. His personality was a perfect fit for this group and it led to work at other festivals and events such as, but not limited to: All Good Festival, Garden of Eden festival, Camp Bisco, Phish Camping Festivals, and Bonnaroo.

Whether on stage in front of tens of thousands or one-on-one he promoted and fomented that we were all connected to something greater than our immediate friends and family. He believed that through love, friendship, community, and the arts, we each play a role in the greater good, and it was his job, and his pleasure, to dial the rest of us in! He preached this without being preachy or pretentious. It was simply the personality of a great guy that radiated for us to be good to one another.

In 2006 he moved to Vermont which he loved. Already with a solid production reputation he became the Production Stage Manager for the Flynn Theater in Burlington, VT. Just like he had done in Connecticut, he became a key player in producing events in the area. For example, he was the Site Manager for the Burlington Discover Jazz Festival, Stage Manager for Lake Champlain Maritime Festival, and Site Manager for Burlington First Night.

Michael was a staunch professional with amazing talent and skill in multiple areas of the performing arts. However, what defined Michael was his altruistic and benevolent nature.

Even as a teen Michael wanted to better his community and bring joy to his neighbors. In addition to performing in local theater he was in the County and District Chorus; a member of The International Thespian Society, where he served as President of his chapter; He was a member of the PA Youth Educators Association; he was involved in the school newspaper; and during the weekends was a part of the Morrisville Methodist Youth Group choir and frequently performed an “awesome” rendition of By My Side (Godspell) at local churches.

As an adult he supported local charities consistently with his time and effort. He volunteered throughout the year and during Christmas time he donated his time and talent by caroling at area nursing homes, playing Santa at Children’s Hospitals, and organizing fundraisers such as Toys for Tots.

His life and career was all about making people happy, entertaining them, and making us feel that we were a part of something greater, something wonderful, something that he knew about and wanted us to be a part of as well. Whether from the stage or behind-the-scenes his enthusiasm and commitment to creating a positive atmosphere for everyone to enjoy was as essential and consistent to his daily life as is complaining about daily life is to most of ours. Making us forget about the things broken or negative in our lives was his effortless mission.

As Co-Emcee of the Gathering of the Vibes from 2004 to present, Michael coined the phrase which he would pleasantly command from the stage, “take only memories, leave only footprints.”

Every time we smile at an event we will be connected to him in the way he wanted. Some events will never be the same without him but, as he wanted, we will have the memories of him and he will be with us…., however, the footprint of the man with the heart of gold and booming laugh won’t soon be filled.

He is survived by his father, William Potashnick; stepmother, Peg Potashnick; brother David Potashnick; and ex-wife Marianne Castaldo. Pre-deceased by his loving mother, Louise Potashnick; Dee Dee, his beloved dog and best friend; and anyone who loved the performing arts.

Other hobbies he enjoyed : Culinary Arts, Painting, Drawing, Art History, Playing Football, Baseball, and Basketball.

A celebration of Michael Potashnick’s life, including a special presentation, will be held on Sunday, February 13, 2011 from 2:00 – 5:00pm at the Flynn Center for the Performing Arts, located at 153 Main Street in Burlington, Vermont. The event is open to the public.

A memorial page has been set up on Facebook who would like to contribute stories and photos to Michael Potashnick’s memorial services are asked to submit medium- to high-resolution photographs (preferably in JPEG format) and stories (1-2 reasonably sized paragraphs) to by Tuesday, January 25, 2011. Those who plan to attend the Memorial may also RSVP. Those who wish to contribute otherwise are kindly asked to donate to the United Way in lieu of flowers.