Dr. Phillips Center Sends Two Local High School Musical Theater Students to National Jimmy Awards ® Competition

Samantha Nelson from Douglas Anderson School of the Arts and Jackson Chase from Lake Nona High School are heading to NYC in late June for the biggest national youth Broadway competition
The students were selected during the Dr. Phillips Center’s 2022 Applause Awards on Saturday evening, which showcased the top 400 musical theater students from 30 high schools and nine counties in the region
$25,000 in scholarships were also awarded to 16 college-bound seniors

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ORLANDO, Fla. (June 5, 2022) – On a night they’ll never forget at the Dr. Phillips Center for the Performing Arts, 400 musical theater students from 30 high schools and nine counties accepted awards at the 8th annual 2022 Applause Awards supported by AdventHealth and Chick-fil-A. At the conclusion of the showcase, two talented students, Samantha Nelson from Douglas Anderson School of the Arts and Jackson Chase from Lake Nona High School were named this year’s Female Lead Performer and Male Lead Performer respectively. The runners-up were Sirena Mia De La Rosa, also from Douglas Anderson School of the Arts, and Ethan Garrepy from Winter Park High School.

Both Nelson and Chase will go on to participate in the National High School Musical Theatre Awards®, known as The Jimmy Awards® in New York City on June 27, 2022. They will compete against 92 of the best musical theater students across the country and be dubbed as the next generation of Broadway stars.

The students will receive professional training opportunities, prizes and an opportunity to win the coveted awards of Best Performance by an Actor and Best Performance by an Actress in the country at the conclusion of the week-long competition.

Modeled after the Tony Awards®, this year’s Applause Awards at the Dr. Phillips Center was directed by Broadway veteran Ray Roderick and hosted by award winning Broadway and TV actress/singer Rachel York. This high-energy event came together following a state-wide search by a panel of 30 casting agents, who visited every school who entered the national competition throughout the months-long adjudication process with more than 4,000 students.

Aside from recognizing the musical theater talent in the region and selecting the two overall winners for the Jimmy Awards, the Dr. Phillips Center also awarded more than $25,000 in scholarships to 16 deserving college-bound seniors.

The 2022 Applause Awards winners is supported by AdventHealth, Chick-fil-A Greater Orlando, State of Florida, Department of State, Division of Arts and Culture, the Florida Council on Arts and the National Endowment for the Arts, Isermann Family Foundation and Walmart Store #3817. The full list of winners is available here.