Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Broadway was shut down. No shows, no cabarets and no going to the diner to watch a waiter belt out “The Winner Takes it All” while guests scarf down an espresso-marinated hanger steak.

But, across the nation, and the world, the pandemic especially impacted schools and student productions. Southwest is a perfect example – their theatre’s production of “Newsies” was slated for April of 2020, but LPS shut down all in-person activities, including school, just three weeks before opening. Alumni Aubrey Aldag was set to make her Broadway debut, competing in the Jimmy Awards in New York, but travel was restricted globally, and young performers, like Aldag, were at a loss for what to do next.

But, one thing rose above the panic and chaos: technology. Classes could go virtual thanks to videoconferencing platforms like Zoom, and theatre could live on thanks to the likes of TikTok’s “Ratatouille the Musical,” among others. So, theatre news website BroadwayWorld decided to take matters into its own hands and start a virtual competition to spotlight young performers in both high school and college, titled “Next on Stage.”

This year, there are five Southwest students participating: freshman Edie Ulrich, sophomore Garytt Brown, junior Estes Stratman and seniors Kyrus Jensen and Josiah Kirchner.

“A bunch of people will submit videos of themselves singing and you are given about a month to vote for your favorites,” Jensen said. “I hope to get my name out there a bit more, but I also hope to gain feedback on how I can better cater to larger audiences.”

Winners for this competition also receive an array of prizes.  These include a scholarship to AMDA (American Musical and Dramatic Academy) and the Atlantic Summer Teen Conservatory, a voice lesson with New York-based coach Matt Farnsworth, a rental certificate for the winners’ school to perform an MTI (Music Theatre International) production – including the likes of Newsies, Mean Girls and more – and a work session with Tesley Office casting director Jimmy Larkin, along with merchandise and a charity donation.

First-round voting opened on Wednesday, Oct. 22, and will close on Wednesday, Nov. 12.  The top 30 submissions from each category (high school and college) will then advance to vote for the top 15, who will then submit new videos each week leading up to the top three of each category, who will then fly out to New York City and perform at the 54 Below cabaret and restaurant, a popular venue for performers in the industry.

“People can vote by going to BroadwayWorld.com, searching ‘Next On Stage’ then clicking on ‘High School Nominees,’” Kirchner said. “There’s a search bar, or you can just scroll through all of the participants, where you can vote for whoever you want.”

National opportunities for student performers, like Next on Stage, are growing in popularity. The Jimmy Awards, hosted by the Broadway League, is another example of this. Over 100 nominees from hundreds of schools get to perform on a Broadway stage and compete for scholarships and recognition – actors like Ryan McCartan, Eva Noblezada and Reneé Rapp got their start here.

Plus, it’s free to audition. All contestants had to do was submit a video and wait for the votes to come in.

“Absolutely go for it, it’s completely worth it,” Kirchner said. “It gives you so much experience self-taping, because if you’re going into the arts for a living, self-taping is one of the most important things to learn how to do, as it’s going to be what gets you a job.”