"Be You. Be Genuine. Fear Nothing." - Chatting with Nicholas Pearson

I would like you to meet Nicholas Pearson! Nicholas is a performer who will be seen as The Beast in The Dutch Apple Dinner Theatre's upcoming production of Beauty and the Beast. He was also recently touring with Prather Entertainment in their National Tour of The Wizard of Oz where he played The Lion/Zeke. This Miami University alumnus has also performed with companies such as Greenwood Lake Theater, Cape Fear Regional Theatre, and The Barn Theatre (MI) just to name a few.

"I think you can learn a lot about people by sharing the stage with them. On stage, Nick is a great actor and one of those scene partners that you know will always be there for you. Off stage, Nick will still always be there for you, and I am lucky to call him one of my best friends." says Greenwood Lake Theater's Co-Artistic Director and Actress Katherine Weatherford.

There are a lot of artists who I have wanted to feature for my series, a checklist one may say, and Nicholas has been on that list for some time now. From his peers to people who see him perform, Nicholas is truly a performer that will always leave you feeling you got your money's worth. His career and his character are a strong reminder that if you work hard for your dreams, your dreams will work hard for you. I am very grateful to have the chance to feature Nicholas Pearson!

How old were you when you knew you wanted to be a performer? 

In some way, I always knew as cliche as it sounds. When I was just a couple of years old, I would dance to commercials in my diaper--something my mom would remind me of for many years. At one point, I started singing what was then the theme song of the McDonald's commercials, Mac the Night:  

"When the clock strikes

Half past six, babe

Time to head for--THE GOLDEN ARCH

Hey! It's a good time for the great taste--DINNER

At McDonald's!

MAKE IT MAC TONIGHT--YEAH!!!"

I performed this in the foyer of my grandparents' house and got applause. That was it. That was me "catching the bug", so to speak. I've been thriving off it ever since.

Are there any teachers or mentors in your life who truly helped you become the wonderful performer you are today?

There are many teachers and mentors over the years that have inspired me to always strive to become the best I can be. In high school, I was privileged to have a trifecta of incredible teachers: Margaret Lawson (theatre), John Long (choir), and the late Mike Sewell (band). Each of them taught me very specific lessons that weren't part of a textbook.

Margaret taught me how to know who I was as a performer and know what I brought to the table. She never gave me the roles I wanted, but she always put me where I fit and where my talents would be best serviced and challenged. This also ended up teaching me how to accept failures and get used to being told "no", and that is such a big part of this industry.

John Long taught me how to embrace what makes me happy and those around me when life starts to crumble. Without getting too specific or personal, Long went through a lot my sophomore year of high school, and he threw himself into the choirs to keep himself and his mind busy. He had a few moments of true humanity when he kind of "lost it" in front of some of us, breaking down in tears. To some, they would think this was inappropriate. To me, I saw a man having a hard time and realized that who he was to us was so much more than a teacher. He was a friend and a human that just needed to be human for a moment.

At that moment, I think we all grew up a little more and saw that life doesn't get easier as you get older as so many of us had thought. We knew the walls of that school had melted away, and we were in the real world experiencing what it means to be an adult. This was definitely a defining moment in my adolescence. I cherish it and thank Long for being vulnerable and human. It taught me it was OK to feel what you're feeling which has helped me tap into some emotionally dark places for stage purposes.

Mike Sewell. The amount this man taught me is immeasurable. He taught me passion. He taught me kindness. He taught me sacrifice. He introduced music as healing. I think he might have been the first person (aside from my parents) to truly believe in me. I'm in tears writing about him because there is so much emotion wrapped up in who this man is. Sewell was like a father to so many of his former students. He gave me opportunities to be the performer I wanted to be.

For our Memorial Day concert my junior year of high school, he asked if I'd like to sing a song from 1776, "Mama Look Sharp". It was the first time I had performed a solo in high school. For my senior year, I sang "Mama Look Sharp" again, but he also added something he knew would become a part of my repertoire for the rest of my life: "Bring Him Home" from Les Mis. I've not had the honor to play Jean Valjean yet, but when I do, I will be dedicating every performance to him. Mike passed away a few years ago, and it broke my heart to not be able to go back to Ohio for his funeral and pay my respects to a man that taught me so very much. His wife is very active on Facebook and keeps all of us updated on things that have been happening to honor Mike over the last few years. I'm so happy, proud, and honored to have known this man and learned so many valuable lessons that have shaped the man and musician I am today.

In college, there were two people that helped me find myself: Dr. Ethan Sperry and Dr. Alison Acord.

Ethan was the director of the Miami University Men's Glee Club during my four-year tenure in the group. Over the course of that time, I held several officer positions and became quite active on campus with Glee Club and the Music Department. With all of this came a friendship with Ethan.

In college, these sorts of relationships tend to develop between students and teachers that are mentors. By the end of college, Ethan had become my best friend. He was the one I knew I could turn to for tough decisions as I did when I was presented with a couple of different job opportunities as a choir director my degree program was Music Education) as well as an offer from a friend to come sublet her apartment in NYC. I had always wanted to live here and try my hand at "the biz", but didn't think it would be possible. When I told Ethan about this, he reminded me that passion for a career is more important than pretty much anything else. I had already made up my mind, but I needed some sort of push, and Ethan was the right person to get that push from. I've never regretted this decision.

Alison Acord was my voice teacher for my last two years in college. When I became part of her vocal studio, I was squarely set on becoming a teacher, so I simply wanted to learn proper technique and pedagogy. However, within a matter of weeks, Alison has unearthed the flare for performance that had kind of been lying dormant since high school. Her belief in me and dedication to all of her students becoming the best singers they could be is a driving force in me to this day more than 13 years after my senior recital. Hers is the voice in my head reminding me to "Open and listen" every time I'm singing. I use a lot of the same vocal warm-ups that she taught me. When I'm trying to figure out a particular interval, phrase, or interpretation, my "inner-monologue" is really a dialogue with the bit of Alison that lives in my brain. This is all to say, I've had many teachers that still are with me everywhere I go and always will be.

Congratulations on being cast in the title role of 'Beast' in Beauty and the Beast at Dutch Apple Dinner Theatre. After all this time of uncertainty due to the pandemic, how does it feel to finally get back on the stage? 

Thank you so much! I've been in a constant state of near-tears for weeks now since receiving my offer. This will without a doubt be an undeniably emotional experience for me. Just as the pandemic hit last year, I was coming off playing Shrek and was still on cloud nine from what is the greatest theatrical experience of my life, thus far. That feeling carried me for a number of months as things had shut down. As the year went on and the date for Broadway's return got further and further away, my spirits started to diminish drastically. As dramatic as it sounds, hope began to die in 2020.

By the fall, I had heard about a few regional houses that had been making adjustments to allow for in-house productions, but each were met with complications and had to close down again a couple of different times. But that's the spirit of the theatre: we are not a community of quitters. We are always innovating and trying to find new and better ways to bring a story to life. Now, we're having to take safety precautions ever further. Knowing that in just about a month's time, I'll be back on stage, performing in a familiar space, surrounded by people that I've known for years, is a truly heart-warming feeling. The hope is returning. We're not 100% in the clear, but there is a light at the end of the tunnel.  

Are there any roles, shows, or moments in your career that stick out and will always be near and dear to your heart? 

So many! My senior year of high school, our spring musical was West Side Story. I had always wanted to play Riff, but as I mentioned above, Margaret Lawson never gave me the role I wanted, but she always gave me what I was right for. In this case, that role was Diesel--the biggest Jet. At 6'3", I was easily the biggest person on stage, so this just made sense. During performances, our Action lost his voice and wasn't able to sing "Gee, Office Krupke", so I got the chance to step in for one performance. It was a truly incredible experience to have that opportunity. After watching the movie and so loving Russ Tamblyn's performance of this song in the movie, I actually got to live out my dream of "playing Riff" for one performance, if just for that one song. The next night was our closing night. Action had his voice back, and everything went back to normal. However, that night, I turned my meniscus in the middle of "Jet's Song" and spent the rest of my final main stage performance in high school on crutches.

My first summer at the Barn Theatre was such an insane experience intensified by the fact that my father had passed away from a heart attack in mid-July while we were in performances for Chicago. I left that morning to be with my family and bury my father. I returned to the Barn the day after the funeral because I knew that's what my dad would want me to do: get back to what you love. My mom, sister, brother, and sister-in-law came to the show that night. It was very special to have them there. During curtain call that night, as I stepped up to the edge of the stage to bow with the rest of the ensemble, I took my eyes up to the rafters and gave my dad a wink. This is a tradition I've continued with every show since then. I could literally talk about special shows, roles, and theatrical moments for days.

What advice would you give any young aspiring artists who want a career in theatre?

Be You. Be Genuine. Fear Nothing. No one in this world decides who or what you are besides you. Just because one person doesn't see you the way you see you doesn't mean someone else won't. A lot of people taught about "types" in this industry, and it's true that these "types" exist. However, we're seeing a lot of "eye-opening" happening within casting that is allowing the opportunity for more performances of different shapes, sizes, colors, gender identities, etc. to be showcased. Is it perfect? NO! Will it ever be? Who can tell? The important thing to remember is that if you don't try if you don't show them, no one will ever know. "The answer is always no if you don't ask the question." 

You're going to hear a lot of "no" throughout your career. That's fine. You weren't meant to work there. It's amazing to me how many opportunities I really wanted that fell through the cracks but made way for other opportunities that led to even better things. Trust that the universe is working in your favor; maybe not in exactly the way you want, but it's all leading to great things if you keep trying.

Take the note, but don't take it personally. Criticism is part of the game. There will be directors and choreographers and others in charge that may not have the best tone when giving notes, but trust that it is in the best interest of the show, and your job is to work together for that ultimate purpose. Ego should be left at the door. Always keep learning. Always keep creating. The minute we stop, there will be no more forward motion in society. As artists, we get the chance to show the world how it could be. There's important, brilliant, beautiful, transformative work to be seen, to be created, to be thought of. We just have to do it.

Check out Nicholas performing "Who I'd Be" from Shrek the Musical at The Duplex in 2019