GOLD WINNER
Nathan Simmons
SILVER WINNER
Stewart Legere
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BRONZE WINNER
Becca Guilderson
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Back in grade school, Nathan Simmons was too shy to audition for the school play: “I couldn’t do it. But then, all the classes got to come and watch it. And I remember watching it...and seeing everyone have so much fun up there. I felt so bad that I didn’t have a chance to do what they’re doing.” He’s come a long way since these days (when he left the auditorium at intermission), landing an ensemble role in Neptune’s 2020 play Controlled Damage and performing a scene-stealing turn as Tyblant in Eastern Front Theatre and Shakespeare By The Sea’s recent sold-out run of Fat Juliet. All along the way, he’s been having just as much fun as his old schoolmates did. It’s about keeping “characters separate but also, for me, keeping them true and honest,” explains Simmons when asked why his work resonates with fans—and how the emerging actor has made a name for himself so impressively fast. “People in the audience can believe it’s not a character but a person up there.”
