Randy Jones was standing center stage in full costume Wednesday when he suffered an apparent heart attack and died at the Lakewood Theater in Madison. He was 63.

Jones was in the middle of Act 1 of a dress rehearsal for “The Village Idiot,” in which he was to play the lead. Before he collapsed, Jones delivered one final line: “You can’t take it with you.”

Known to hundreds thanks to his time in the theater, Jones is remembered as a uniquely versatile performer, a loving husband and father and, as Lakewood Theater wrote on Facebook, “a great man. A really great man.”

Jones discovered his passion — and talent — for acting in his 40s, and in 2023, he and his wife, Lisa, bought Waterville’s former Railroad Square Cinema, and transformed it into The Playhouse at Waterville Station, a performing arts and cultural center. His son Benjamin Cojo, 31, said this was the perfect mission for his father.

“He found a later-in-life passion that he loved, and he was a huge community guy,” Cojo said. “Being able to put those two things together just flourished for him.”

A 2004 performance of “Oklahoma!” at the Waterville Opera House changed his life. Jones, who spoke with a Morning Sentinel reporter hours before his death, said he was “blown away” by how good it was.

Jones, who had a doctorate in computer science and had co-founded a software company, had moved to Waterville to teach at Colby. He said he had always been interested in the arts — he played the trumpet and sang in Colby College’s chorus — but until that point he wasn’t involved.

But seeing the musical reignited what Jones called his secret dream, of being an actor. When the Waterville Opera House staged “Jesus Christ Superstar,” Jones said he knew it was time to do something. He’d memorized that album when he was a child.

From there, his passion took off. He performed in shows at the Waterville Opera House, the Gaslight Theatre in Hallowell and the Lakewood Theater in Madison.

Carol McCormick Semple, a former Portland Press Herald editor, said she saw Jones perform many times and said audiences could count on him for a solid performance, whether the role was big or small. Semple had tickets to see Jones perform in “The Village Idiot,” which The Lakewood Theater has since canceled.

When Jones collapsed Wednesday, his castmates administered CPR and kept his airway open until paramedics arrived.

Katherine Quinn, president of Lakewood Theater’s company, Curtain Up Enterprises, remembers Jones as “generous and crazy intelligent … a true gentleman.”

Jones’ death was a shock to the cast of “The Village Idiot.” Quinn said it was a collaborative decision to cancel the show.

“It was very sudden, very intense,” she said. “But honestly, Randy loved what he did. He went in full costume, center stage, doing what he loved.”

When Cojo was a teenager, he practiced lines with his father, on long car rides or at home when Jones got back from rehearsal.

“I was embarrassed to stand up and hug him after the shows,” Cojo said. “But it was clear he was loving it every moment of it.”

When Jones discovered the Aqua City Actors Theatre, his passions for theater and community met. He joined the board, and a few years later was faced with a problem.

When the Paul J. Schupf Center was built in downtown Waterville, ACAT lost the stage it used for performances four times a year. The theater group couldn’t find a solution, and again Jones hatched a secret plan.

He talked it over with his wife, Lisa, and they decided they would buy Waterville’s Railroad Square Cinema once he sold his shares in his software company.

Jones hoped The Playhouse at Waterville Station would be ACAT’s forever home. He also made it a space for the Elm City Community Music School, for a recording studio and for anyone who wanted to perform.

“Basically, we don’t say no,” Jones said Wednesday.

The Playhouse didn’t charge ACAT rent, and for other shows Jones sometimes told performers to just pay what they could.

“It’s for the community,” Jones said. “It’s a place for community to come and see shows they wouldn’t see at the opera house, but also a place for if anyone wants to put on a show.”

Cojo said Jones could connect with anyone. His family has seen an outpouring of support from friends who date back to high school, and some just from Facebook, who say Jones helped them through tough times.

“Having community, being supportive of people, outreach — that was core to him through and through,” Cojo said. “Yeah, he loved the arts, and those two things found a way to work together for him, and that’s great. But I would say his community went even above that.”

Cojo said Jones was incredibly devoted to his family.

“Randy and Lisa shared a lot of love,” Cojo said. “And they shared a lot of love with their family, especially as their family grew and grew. And we love him very much.”

Jones is survived by his wife, Lisa; his father, Walter; his siblings, Earl, Heather and Seth; his children, Ben, Sam and Steph; his “bonus” children, Kate, Josh and Jesse; and his grandchildren, Shaylee, Adrianna, Luke, Bronson and Pepper.