It was quite a night at the Cab Calloway Lifetime Achievement Awards last night in Elmsford.

Honors went John Banks of Briarcliff’s performing arts program (who was unable to attend); John and Cagle McDonald of Irvington’s Clocktower Players (introduced by a musical parody medley written by Ray Kimmelman and performed by Jocelyn Jones, accompanied by Kinny Landrum); Donald Antonecchia, superintendent of Pleasantville’s schools; and Pat Shaw, a longtime fixture at Pleasantville Music Theatre, PMT.

Each of the honorees spoke of the honor they felt at receiving the awards, named for the longtime Knollwood Road resident Cab Calloway, who gave us the song “Minnie the Moocher.”

The evening opened with emcee and Calloway award founder George Puello who then introduced the Lighthouse Youth Theatre company of “A Chorus Line.”

Musician Kinny Landrum accepted the award on Banks’ behalf. Banks had taught Landrum’s daughter, Charlotte, and set her on a course toward further musical study.

After another Lighthouse performance, of a duet from “Beauty & the Beast,” it was time to turn to the next honorees: the McDonalds.

Jocelyn Jones sang Kimmelman’s clever medley, set to showtunes and tailored to the husband-and-wife team whose work at the Clocktower Players in Irvington was heralded. They were then introduced by ITHT president Joe Zeolla. Cagle did most of the talking when the couple reached the podium, but John McDonald did mention to fit in a funny “I was told to say thank you.”

Calloway’s daughter, Cecelia, performed with her All-Stars band, and performed her dad’s signature song. She spoke briefly about her foundation’s effort to buy the home in which her father lived for 34 years. Part of the proceeds from last night will go to that goal. CeCe, as she is called, said that a who’s who of music came to their Elmsford home, including Count Basie and Ella Fitzgerald.
“Their spirits are still there,” she said.

After the intermission, Tom Heintzelman’s Pleasantville High School Jazz Band held forth, in advance of the honors going to Donald Antonecchia, superintendent of schools in Pleasantville.

Antonecchia, a big booster of the performing arts who is about to retire, accepted the award on behalf of his staff and students. He thanked his family and his parents for their support, thanking his father in particular for driving him and his rock-band members to late-night gigs when he was a teen. He then mentioned he might take up the rock music again in retirement.

The evening’s final honoree was preceded by a quartet of PMT “divas”—Paulette Oliva, Jeanne McCabe, Elise Godfrey and Chris Jamison—who sang songs Pat Shaw delivered as the go-to star for PMT for years.

Shaw was also a producer, stage manager, set painter and doer of all the thankless tasks that theater groups need done.

Shaw, the evening’s final honoree, moved to Las Vegas 15 years ago, but came back to receive the award. Her voice caught in her throat as she talked about being remembered by her long-ago theater friends.

“I owe community theater in Westchester a great deal,” she said. “It’s how I learned my craft, on stage and off stage.”