Finalists Announced for DPAC'S TRIANGLE RISING STARS Central North Carolina's High School Musical Theatre Awards

DPAC has announce the finalists for Triangle Rising Stars, central North Carolina's High School Musical Theatre Awards, that will take place on May 18th, 2023 at 7:30 PM with host, Clay Aiken and special guest Tony Award Winner, Beth Leavel. Triangle Rising Stars is presented by Blue Cross and Blue Shield of North Carolina.

This year, students from 34 high schools across Central North Carolina participated in hopes of being selected as a Triangle Rising Stars' Top 20 finalist.

DPAC's Triangle Rising Stars (TRS) celebrates outstanding achievement in high school musical theatre, by focusing attention on the meaningful work being done both on and off stage by dedicated teachers and students.

TRS also serves as the regional competition as part of the National High School Musical Theatre Awards (NHSMTA). This regional competition is open to high school musical theatre productions and musical theatre students in Central North Carolina.

The Triangle Rising Stars Awards will feature performances by 20 student finalists from across Central North Carolina, as well as a special performance by 2022 Triangle Rising Stars Best Actor, Joshua Thompson, and 2022 Triangle Rising Stars Best Actress, Symoné Spencer.

New This Year: DPAC has invited performers from each participating school for the first time ever to perform as part of an opening group number on DPAC's stage. Approximately 70 students were invited to represent their school on the DPAC stage for a special performance.

"Triangle Rising Stars provides life-changing opportunities for students across Central North Carolina," says Megan Rindoks, DPAC's Director of Community Engagement. "On May 18th, the future stars of Broadway will make their DPAC debut, and we will celebrate keeping the arts alive in our school systems. I'm looking forward to welcoming Clay Aiken back as host, Tony Award winner Beth Leavel as our special guest, and Symoné Spencer and Joshua Thompson, our 2022 student winners. It will be a night to remember!"

TRIANGLE RISING STARS BEST ACTRESS FINALISTS:

• Ella Ludwig (Ursula, The Little Mermaid, Enloe High School)
• Ellie O'Connell (Regina George, Mean Girls, CE Jordan High School)
• Juliana Robertson (The Baker's Wife, Into the Woods, Longleaf School of the Arts)
• Laylah Cooper-Holman (Sandy Cheeks, The SpongeBob Musical, Weaver Academy
• Lilly Pritchard (Cady Heron, Mean Girls, Heritage High School)
• Sarah Praught (Janis Ian, Mean Girls, Heritage High School)
• Serenity Burr (Celie, The Color Purple, Southern School of Energy and Sustainability)
• Sheba Gage (Regina George, Mean Girls, Broughton High School)
• Shreya Ravi (Wednesday Addams, The Addams Family, Green Hope High School)
• Zari Alexandria McIntosh (Mama Morton, Chicago, Durham School of the Arts)

TRIANGLE RISING STARS BEST ACTOR FINALISTS:

• Aidan Armstrong (SpongeBob Squarepants, The SpongeBob Musical, Weaver Academy)
• Braden Shepstead (Damian Leigh, Mean Girls, Heritage High School)
• Christian Holloway (Mister, The Color Purple, Southern School of Energy and Sustainability)
• Dominic Sicola (Scarecrow, The Wizard of Oz, Fuquay Varina High School)
• Kaleb Bell (The Baker, Into the Woods, Longleaf School of the Arts)
• Max Templeton (Damian Leigh, Mean Girls, Broughton High School)
• Noah Colvin (Sebastian, The Little Mermaid, Enloe High School)
• Richmond Parris (Plankton, The SpongeBob Musical, Weaver Academy)
• Ryan Gregory (Prince Eric, The Little Mermaid, Enloe High School)
• Timire Leak (Horton, Seussical the Musical, Athens Drive High School)

This year, the Top 20 Student Finalists will be adjudicated by an esteemed panel of guest judges including Chauntee' Shuler Irving, Dirk Lumbard, Lisa Jolley, and Terri Dollar. These talented individuals have vast career knowledge spanning Broadway, television, and the recording industry, as well as experience running one of our area's most reputable talent agencies.

Other awards recognizing excellence in student performance and production that will be presented include Best Dance, Best Ensemble, Best Musical, Triangle Rising Star Spirit Award, Best Costume Design, Best Student Orchestra, Best Set Design, Best Choreography, and Best Lighting Design.

At this live awards ceremony, winners of all 11 award categories will be announced, including DPAC's Triangle Rising Stars Best Actor and Best Actress, both will receive $2,000 and an all-expense paid trip to New York City to compete in the National High School Musical Theatre Awards.

The National High School Musical Theatre Awards (NHSMTA), was established in 2009 by Pittsburgh CLO and Nederlander Alliances, a division of The Nederlander Organization, to elevate the importance of theatre arts education in schools and reward excellence in student performance. The program impacts over 140,000 students annually who participate in high school musical theatre competitions sponsored by over forty professional theatres throughout the US.

Since its inception, NHSMTA has been the catalyst for more than $4,000,000 in educational scholarships awarded to deserving young performers. Also known as The Jimmy Awards, named for Broadway impresario James M. Nederlander, this year-round program is administered by The Broadway League Foundation Inc.

In 2022, both Joshua and Symoné were named Top Four Finalists last year at The Jimmy Awards, which is an incredibly rare accomplishment for two students from the same regional program. As Top Four finalists, Joshua and Symoné received thousands of dollars in scholarships and multiple invitations to audition for Broadway shows, which are still being received today.

DPAC nominees have had great success at The Jimmy Awards in recent years. In 2021, Triangle Rising Stars nominee Elena Holder won the coveted Best Performance by an Actress title at The Jimmy Awards. This honor came with $25,000 in scholarships, an invitation to audition for multiple Broadway shows and the opportunity to perform in Times Square in celebration of the reopening of Broadway.

Tickets are $20 for the Triangle Rising Stars and are on sale now:

• Online at DPACnc.com
• Blue Cross and Blue Shield of North Carolina - Ticket Center at DPAC: 919.680.2787,
  123 Vivian Street, Durham NC
• Ticketmaster.com

For more information about Triangle Rising Stars, visit https://www.dpacnc.com/community/triangle-rising-stars

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