West Bloomfield Grad Wins National Musical Theater Award

In May, West Bloomfield High graduate Brian Baylor earned the chance to compete on a national stage, and this month, he made the most of it.  

The future Oakland University musical theater major said while his trip to New York wasn't a first, the National High School Musical Theater Awards made it "unbelievable". 

"This time, I felt really integrated with the city, because I was there for a week," Baylor said. 

He and the 61 other students from across the country spent 13 hours a day in rehearsals and workshops. While it was tiring, "we were doing what we loved," he added. 

Baylor has loved theater since taking an introductory class as an Orchard Lake Middle School student. Music has always been a big part of his life, he said, and "performing is just such a release. It allows me to connect with people. I just love telling stories and learning about other people through the characters."

In New York, Baylor reprised one of his favorite roles, as Coalhouse Walker, Jr. from Ragtime, on stage at the Minskoff Theatre, where The Lion King has been performed for more than a decade.

"They gave us 15 minutes to take in being on a Broadway stage," he said of performance day. "Then we had to hit the ground running, because we were opening the show that night." 

Some Broadway casts saw the students' performances, Baylor said. Students also got a chance to talk with theater professionals during the week about what it means to make a living as an actor. 

While the competition's major awards went to Sarah Lynn Marion of California and Taylor Varga of Connecticut, the more than 60 competitors selected Baylor for the Spirit of the Jimmy Awards honor, as someone most representative of the program, who exhibits professionalism, support for colleagues and talent. 

"It really floored me that I won it, because I was honored by 61 other kids," Baylor said. "I honestly believe any one of them could have gotten it. It was just a wonderful environment." 

Settling back into his summer routine, Baylor is playing the role of Tom Collins in The Starlight Theater's production of Rent, which opens August 2. Learn more on the theater's Facebook page.