Meet the Students of Next on Stage: Tomi Newman's Outlook on Auditions Changed After One Masterclass

We're down to our top 10 contestants in our Next on Stage competition.

Contestant Tomi Newman shares more about her charity, a masterclass that changed their perspective on auditions, and choreographing a show!

Check out Tomi's latest performance HERE.

What charity did you pick and why?

I picked The Trevor Project because it is very important to me that I am protecting my community, and especially the youth of my community. I want to bring awareness to the struggles that LGBTQ+ people face, and donating will reduce that struggle and bring more LGBTQ+ joy to the world.

What is a fond memory you have from a past masterclass?

My fondest theatre memory was when I went to an audition styling masterclass with Talia Thiesfield. The students all came to class wearing one of our favorite audition outfits and she would give us each styling tips and tell us some shows we could audition for wearing that outfit. I thought for sure I was going to get type casted. I thought she would look at my outfit and tell me I could audition for shows like Fun Home or Jagged Little Pill or any show with a masculine female character. But I was shocked when she started throwing out names of shows I that loved and believed I could never be in. After her class, I never dared change my look for an audition to fit what I thought they wanted to see. I have gone to every audition since knowing that who I am and how I present is beautiful and enough.

Share a memory from seeing a production!

Every year my dance studio does a project called "Vision" where every student has the opportunity to choreograph, stage, and costume a dance piece to be performed in a showcase. Up until participating in Vision, I had never been on the creative side of a show or production. But the pride that I felt watching my dancers perform my choreography was enlivening and made me more aware of my position as a performer through the lens of the creative team. Since being a choreographer in Vision and seeing my piece come to life onstage, I have decided that I want to take the path of being a professional choreographer as well as being a performer in stage productions.

After two successful seasons of our virtual singing competition, we're back again by popular demand with the third season of our online musical theatre singing competition for student performers sponsored by The International College of Musical Theatre.

Check out all of the contestants HERE!