Justin Nichols: NCTC Play it Forward Campaign

One of the highlights of my year is spent with high school junior & senior theater kids at the NCTC College Discovery Day!

It's 8am on the Greensboro College campus and they're excitedly and anxiously filing into Huggins Auditorium. You see a shy face light up when they notice a familiar thespian and cross to sit with them. Some are more outgoing, walking in with a song on their voice and introducing themselves to strangers. We give their orientation letting them know what to expect and divide them in their "teams" of like-disciplined peers. They begin to relax and smile (and sing - they love to sing!)!

Throughout the day these young theater artists will get a pitch from over 30 colleges and universities from all over NC who are eager to see them join their campus communities. Do first years get to perform? Do your students mostly live on campus? How many students will be in my acting class? What's your tech program like? Do you do musicals? Where's Brevard?

There are opportunities for seminars ranging from how to pay for college to what a day in the life of a theater major looks like. The parents are usually more eager to ask questions, but everyone learns something about what it is to be a college student artist. They even get to experience a staple of college life when we all go eat in The Caf!

Our high school seniors have a special task: the audition or portfolio demonstration. For some, it's as simple as reaching into their trick bag and pulling out an old favorite, for others it's the first time they'll be showing their work to auditors. For all these students, it's serious business. They have a chance to shine in front of folks that can help them determine their next four (or more) years!

By this time in the day our young artists have become friendly and comfortable with their peers. A student from Raleigh has volunteered to play the rehearsal piano in the holding room so another from Colfax can rehearse their song. A Charlotte acting major-to-be gives notes on the monologue rehearsed by her new friend from Boone. It's truly beautiful.

While the seniors form single-file lines to proceed into the audition the juniors get more time to engage with the colleges and to take more seminars about college theater. They've made fast-friends and are talking with one another about how to accomplish that thing they saw in that play last year at the NCTC High School Play Festival. They're already talking about their auditions for next year.

As the seniors file out of the audition hall, their callbacks are posted. Which school is interested in me today? Who should I go speak to? Is there scholarship money available? Where is Cullowhee?

The fast-paced day comes to a close. Some students leave with decisions, scholarship offers and future secured. Others leave with new questions that they hadn't considered yet and will come to major life decisions soon. They will all leave with a better idea of what our state's colleges & universities have to offer. They are all less likely to take their talents elsewhere.

Join with me today as we raise funds to keep this program alive and well. Help us keep these talented young people in North Carolina where they can help fuel our creative economy and tell our stories.

I'll thank you for all of your gifts on Facebook:

Up to $50 - A Thank You in a Facebook Post

$50-74 - I'll deliver a young rescued Ginkgo Tree to you in a cute pot!

$75-99 - I'll broadcast your Thank You Live to FB! (no edits, no second takes - just me stumbling through a message that you can make fun of later).

$100+ - A Thank You video of me baking you a cake that I'll deliver!

These perks are cumulative, so if you give $100+ you get a Facebook Thank You Post, a Ginkgo Tree, a Facebook Video Post and the cake!