From Broadway Camp to MainStage: Rising Stars Shine in ‘Beautiful: The Carole King Musical’

Adriana Vicinanzo and Elizabeth Nestlerode perform during a dress rehearsal of, “Beautiful: The Carole King Musical,” on the MainStage at Capital Repertory Theatre in Albany on Sunday, July 7, 2024. Photo by Kevin Montano for Proctors Collaborative

Collaborative School of the Arts teaches professionalism, teamwork

Adriana Vicinanzo and Ethan Crowley have progressed from Collaborative School of the Arts (CSOA) Broadway Camp to starring on the MainStage at Capital Repertory Theatre in “Beautiful: The Carole King Musical.” Both young actors credit the professionalism and teamwork they learned during the summer program for their success.

Broadway Camp, a summer program hosted at Proctors, includes daily rehearsals and workshops over four weeks, during which aspiring performers, stage managers and technicians work together as an ensemble to produce a full-scale musical. Vicinanzo, from Amsterdam, and Crowley, from Saratoga Springs, learned about the program through their peers and teachers.

Aspiring actors, orchestra members, designers and producers come together under the guidance of Broadway professionals. Vicinanzo starred as Maureen in “RENT” in the 2021 Broadway Camp production, and Crowley starred as Barry Glickman in last summer’s production of “The Prom.” This summer, Broadway Camp presents “Fiddler on the Roof.”

“I learned so much in those couple weeks at Broadway Camp. I feel like they really established a sense of professionalism and that carried over into my professional contracts,” said Vicinanzo.

“It gets you used to what is expected of you as a performer once you enter the professional world and just the pace of things, how quickly you have to be off book, how quickly you have to learn dance numbers and songs and all of that. And it just gets you used to working at a quicker pace than maybe what you’re used to before,” Crowley added.

Vicinanzo and Crowley are both featured ensemble members in theREP’s summer musical. Additionally, Vicinanzo plays the role of Betty/Ensemble, while Crowley serves as an understudy for a member of The Drifters.

The 21-year-old Vicinanzo said, “I’m so excited to be able to be working at theREP. I’ve heard so much about this company ever since I was young and just starting out. I’ve always wanted to work here, honestly. To be able to work with some Broadway veterans and people with just such impressive resumes and backgrounds in theater and the arts has been awesome. I’m really excited to be here and I’m glad that I worked with the Collaborative School of the Arts over that summer because after I did that… that’s kind of what I feel like got my foot in the door.”

“I’m super excited. I think we have put together something pretty amazing. It’s a great show, I’m excited that we finally get to share it with groups of people for the next five weeks.”

See the young, talented performers at theREP until Aug. 18 in “Beautiful: The Carole King Musical.” Tickets are on sale now by visiting the Box Office at Proctors in person or via phone at (518) 346-6204, Monday-Saturday 10 a.m.-6 p.m. or online at attherep.org.

Capital Repertory Theatre and Collaborative School of the Arts are a part of Proctors Collaborative.