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The DPAC Rising Star Awards is made possible by the generous support of
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THE DPAC RISING STAR AWARDS
The DPAC Rising Star Awards is a program designed to celebrate outstanding achievements in high school musical theater throughout central North Carolina. The program focuses attention on the meaningful work being done both on and off stage by dedicated teachers and students. Rising Stars is part of the National High School Musical Theatre awards, also known as the Jimmy Awards, in honor of Jimmy Nederlander Sr.
Thanks to the generosity of our Blue Cross of North Carolina and other valuable sponsors and community partners, this program remains free for all schools and students to participate in.
SAVE THE DATE! The DPAC Rising Star Awards will take place at DPAC on May 29, 2025.
The event will feature twenty student finalists as they compete live for their chance to advance to the national level at the Jimmy Awards in New York City. In addition to these Top 20 Student Finalists, student representatives from each participating high school will perform on DPAC’s stage as Ensemble members. Throughout the course of the evening, 12 awards will be presented recognizing excellence in a broad range of categories. You can look forward to special appearances from last year’s Best Actor Conor Kruger, and Best Actress Alex Fluker who will return to perform and to help announce the two students who will go on to compete nationally. Hosted by Clay Aiken, and adjudicated live by a panel of esteemed judges, this event will not be one to miss.
This Season's Participating High Schools / Registered Musicals
- Penn-Griffin School for the Arts The Addams Family: Teen Edition
- October 24-26, 2024
- Hillside High School The SpongeBob Musical
- November 8-10, 2024
- Durham School of the Arts Little Shop of Horrors
- November 13-16, 2024
- Knightdale High School The Color Purple
- November 14-16, 2024
- Heritage High School Shrek The Musical
- November 14-16, 2024
- Longleaf School of the Arts The Color Purple
- November 14-17, 2024
- Wakefield High School Disney's Descendants: The Musical
- November 21-23, 2024
- Ravenscroft School Little Woman
- January 31-February 2, 2025
- Durham Academy Bright Star
- February 13-15, 2025
- Frankin Academy Alice By Heart
- February 14-16 & February 20-22, 2025
- Heritage High School Hairspray
- February 20-22, 2025
- Broughton High School Mamma Mia!
- February 27-March 1, 2025
- Athens Drive Magnet High School The Little Mermaid
- March 6-8, 2025
- East Chapel Hill High School Hadestown Teen Edition
- March 6-8, 2025
- Saint Mary's School SIX: Teen Edition
- March 13-15, 2025
- Millbrook High School Something Rotten
- March 13-15, 2025
- Carrboro High School Something Rotten
- March 13-15, 2025
- Green Level High School Hadestown Teen Edition
- March 13-16, 2025
- Jordan-Matthews High School Matilda The Musical
- March 14-16, 2025
- RJ Reynolds High School Hadestown Teen Edition
- March 20-22, 2025
- Enloe Magnet High School Between The Lines
- March 20-22, 2025
- South Garner High School You're A Good Man Charlie Brown (Revised)
- March 20-22, 2025
- Apex Friendship High School 9 To 5
- March 20-22, 2025
- Seaforth High School Anastasia
- March 20-22, 2025
- Weaver Academy The Prom
- March 20-22 & March 27-29, 2025
- C.E. Jordan High School Big Fish School Edition
- March 20-22 & March 27-29, 2025
- James B. Dudley High School In The Heights
- March 27-29, 2025
- Clayton High School James and the Giant Peach
- April 3-5, 2025
- American Leadership Academy - Johnston Seussical The Musical
- March 27-29, 2025
- Cardinal Gibbons High School Shrek The Musical
- March 28-29 & April 3-5, 2025
- St. Thomas More Academy Hadestown Teen Edition
- March 27-29 & April 4-5, 2025
- Overhills High School Shrek The Musical
- April 3-5, 2025
- Knightdale High School Hadestown Teen Edition
- April 3-5, 2025
- Western Harnett High School High School Musical
- April 10-12, 2025
- Christ Covenant School Tuck Everlasting
- April 10-12, 2025
- Green Hope High School The SpongeBob Musical
- April 10-12, 2025
- Rolesville High School Curtains
- April 10-12, 2025
- Chapel Hill High School The Lightning Thief
- April 24-26, 2025
- East Wake / Tech and Design Magnet School The Wiz
- April 24-26, 2025
- Panther Creek High School Little Women
- April 24-26, 2025
- Heritage High School Legally Blonde
- April 24-26, 2025
- Wakefield High School Chicago: Teen Edition
- April 24-26, 2025
- Longleaf School of the Arts The Phantom of the Opera
- April 24-27, 2025
- Wake Forest High School Disney's The Little Mermaid
- April 25-26, 2025
Student Performance Awards Categories
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Best Actor
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Best Actress
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Best Dancer
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The DPAC Shining Star
Student Production Awards Categories
- Best Student Lighting Design
- Best Student Choreography
- Best Student Costume Design
- Best Student Orchestra
School Production Awards Categories
- Best Ensemble Tier 1
- Best Ensemble Tier 2
- Best Musical Tier 1
- Best Musical Tier 2
Student Tech & Production Team
DPAC will select students from participating high schools to be on The DPAC Rising Star Awards' Tech and Production Team. We're seeking students to serve as Stage Managers, Talent Managers, and to assist in loads of other tech roles at our awards ceremony. Interested students should email their resume, cover letter and references to DPAC's Director of Community Engagement, Megan Rindoks, at mrindoks@dpacnc.com. The deadline for applications is April 1, 2025.
DPAC will conduct in-person interviews in mid April and will select the student Tech & Production Team by the week of April 21st, 2025.
Note: Most student tech and production roles will be required to attend all Rising Star Awards rehearsals leading up to the live awards ceremony on May 29, 2025.
Art Gallery in partnership with Durham Art Guild
Returning this year, The DPAC Rising Star Awards will partner with Durham Art Guild to incorporate a pop-up gallery in DPAC’s lobby during the ceremony on Thursday, May 29, 2025. This gallery will feature work created by visual arts students at participating high schools. The deadline for student artwork submissions is April 18, 2025. More information about how to submit work for consideration has been provided to representatives at each participating high school. A team of three jurors will review all submitted artwork and select student pieces to be on display.
Meet the Jurors
Dara Baldwin is a Durham native, graduated from Durham School of the Arts in 2012 and received a B.A. in Art History from UNC Chapel Hill in 2019. Currently, Dara is the Curator and Gallery Manager of the Durham Art Guild (DAG), acting as the main contact for all exhibition scheduling, artwork purchases, and installation at DAG galleries and partner locations.
Brian Gonzales is a multidisciplinary artist born in Santa Monica, California. He received his BFA from East Carolina University in Greenville, North Carolina, and his MFA from the Herron School of Art and Design in Indianapolis, Indiana. In 2016, Brian moved to the United Arab Emirates, where he spent 7 years teaching drawing and printmaking at the University of Sharjah, College of Fine Arts and Design. He currently lives in Durham and is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Art and Design at North Carolina Central University. Brian has exhibited his work internationally with recent projects and exhibitions including: Ayyam Gallery, Dubai, UAE (2023); Aisha Alabbar Gallery, Dubai, UAE (2023); Contemporary Art Museum, Raleigh, NC (2023-2024); DAG Golden Belt Gallery, Durham, NC (2024); and NCCU Art Museum, Durham, NC (2024).
Faith Reagin is a young Queer artist working in the Triangle as a gallery coordinator, custom framer, and freelance curator. Last year, they were head curator for Haptic Happenings, a project funded by Durham's Office On Youth that supported young local artists through material, educational, and financial means, culminating in a juried exhibition presented by the Durham Arts Guild. Faith has worked in art galleries for 6 years, doing everything from front desk
