Video: Jimmy Awards Alumni Get Ready to Celebrate 15 Years

Hello, I'm Richard Ridge for Broadway World

On January 29th, 54 Below celebrates the Jimmy Awards, leading up to their 15th anniversary

It'll feature 15 talented performers who jump-started their careers at the Jimmy Awards

and I caught up with a few of them here at 54 Below. So as the Jimmys get ready to celebrate their 15th anniversary. Crazy

On June 24th, what did being a part of the Jimmy Awards mean to you

And how has it helped you along? The Jimmy Awards has been something that I've kind of held up here for so long

and I've always, you know, dreamed of being a part of it, and to actually do it was so special

I felt like a sponge, just the whole experience, just taking everything in, being open to anything

and I learned so much in that short week that we did it, and I thought it would something, would be something that, you know

passes me by eventually. I'd be like, okay, that was a fun moment, but it's been with me through and through

again, with the community, and like coming back and celebrating every year. It's been such a special moment every year for me to just be a part of

and remember that, oh wow, this is a thing that continues, a gift that continues to give, you know

Okay, we have to go back. So you were in the Jimmy's for two years? Two years

What were they? 2013, I was nominated for the Lady of the Lake in Spamalot

and that year I won the Carnegie Mellon Pre-College Program Scholarship, which was super awesome

and I went to Carnegie for six weeks, and got to stay there for six weeks and work with all the professors there

and it was so fabulous and such a valuable experience, because I got to work on all my college audition material

and it really prepared me for what was coming up in my high school career

And then in 2015, I was nominated for Mary Poppins. Yeah? Yeah, and it was a blast

So what are you doing currently? Currently, I am playing Glinda in Wicked on Broadway. Wow

Yes, yes. We just celebrated our 20th anniversary of Wicked, which was a whirlwind and so much fun

and it's been a dream role of mine since I was very young, so it's been a blast

Because we spoke at the 20th. Yes, we did. On that incredible carpet, but look at this

You weren't a finalist, but that's it. Everybody learned so much from this, and you can go so far. Absolutely

You win just by being there. You really do, and it's such a valuable experience

and you make so many amazing friends, and so many of the people that I was with in 2013 and 2015 are here now working

and that's the real prize. So take me back to the jimmies of 2017

What did you do that night? That night I did, well, first my medley number was

Some of These Days from Hello My Baby, which nobody knew, but it was a really fun number

and then I did Lost in the Wilderness from Children of Eden as my soloist number

and I'm doing it in the concert on the 29th, and it felt a bit like I had a bit of a

not in a bad way, but almost like a trauma response. I was like, oh God, finalists, scary

but we're excited. We're very excited to do it. Yeah. The first moment we walked into the Minskoff actually for

I think we had like a sound check or something, and I was like, it was the first time I had ever been on a Broadway stage

I'd only been to New York once before this week, and like, yeah, it was truly, I mean

the first time you walk out on a Broadway stage, there's nothing like it. So it must be amazing, though, you know, you look back like

oh my gosh, you were nominated for the jimmies, you did it, and look what's happened to your career since then

I mean, was it always a dream of yours to maybe one day be on Broadway

and be in a big show? Oh, absolutely. I mean, ever since I was eight and I decided I wanted to do this

but I think the Jimmy Awards gave me a chance to see it as a real thing

It felt tangible because I was doing it, I was on the Minskoff stage

and that is, it was such a blessing and such a stepping stone to go

oh, it's real, right? It's not just a thing of dreams, and I think that is what's so important about the Jimmy Awards

it gives practical practice, it gives you a chance to look at it from a realistic point of view

and not just this thing that you imagine in your brain. And so for that reason, I think the Jimmy Awards is a dream come true

and I'm so glad it's been around for 15 years, and I can't wait to see 15 plus 15 plus 15 more

The jimmies really opened my mind up to the possibility of having a career like this

I come from a town that not many people do musical theater, and so coming to New York for really the first time

and seeing a community of people who want the same thing I do really made me have an even stronger drive and build my passion to do this

and I am so grateful for that, truly. What will you be seeing on January 29th? Can you tell us

I can. I'm going to be seeing The Wizard and I from Wicked, which is exciting

That is not goosebumps. I know, I'm excited. I'm a little nervous, but it'll be fun. It'll be a fun time

Have the time of your life. I know, thank you