Face of the Future: The Last Ship's Collin Kelly-Sordelet

No matter what the critics and audiences decide about The Last Ship, I can tell you this: Collin Kelly-Sordelet, who is making his Broadway debut in the show, is going to be huge in theatre (and probably beyond).  I won't review the show or his specific performance until after it opens later this month.  But I will say that this young man makes quite an impression - in both roles he plays.









He's recently attended Julliard, was a member of Paper Mill Playhouse's New Voices 2011, and graduated from Montclair New Jersey's High School of Visual and Performing Arts.  He is a young guy.  And he is going places.

Famous Father with Soon-
to-be-Famous Son: Collin
with his dad, Rick, Broadway
fight director/choreographer

How often do you get such variety in Broadway stars' high school pictures?  Here he is in the casts of Pride and Prejudice and Miss Saigon, along with a video of him as Bobby Strong in the school's production of Urinetown!

His other New York appearance was in the concert presentation of Reefer Madness.

And now he's on Broadway...look at some of the people he's met!

(Left) Jim Parsons and (Right) Alan Rickman

Break a leg! And Happy Opening Night, Collin!

Jeff

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Face of the Future: The Bridges of Madison County's Whitney Bashor

If you've seen The Bridges of Madison County, I'm sure you noticed the ethereal presence of Whitney Bashor.  If not, you may have seen her in off-Broadway's The Fantasticks.  Or just maybe you've seen her in one of many regional or college - she's a graduate of University of Michigan - productions.  No matter where you've seen her, it's no surprise to yo that her career is really starting to take off, making her the perfect Face of the Future.  In fact, the only real surprise from this gifted natural, is that she's just now making her Broadway debut!



New York debut! The Fantasticks

With Nick Spangler

Various Readings and Interview

At York Theatre Company

A reading of White Noise

Talking Light in the Piazza

College: A Chorus Line

She played Val

Regional: Amazing Grace, Fly By Night and The Light in the Piazza

Amazing Grace at Goodspeed

Fly by Night at Dallas Theater Center

The Light in the Piazza at Theatreworks

Broadway debut! The Bridges of Madison County

Rehearsals and Recording with

Hunter Foster, Kelli O'Hara and Steven Pasquale

Jeff
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Face of the Future: Cinderella's Joe Carroll

When you Google the name Joe Carroll, up pops up a slew of articles and some very disturbing images of a character in the show The Following.  I don't watch the show, but he must be something.  But I have a feeling that pretty soon, we'll be seeing a lot of articles and many more images when we Google the guy I'm thinking of.  He started out on Broadway as an understudy in Once.  Then he moved up to the role of Balthazar in the recent revival of Romeo and Juliet.  Along the way to his current gig, he's played concerts at Joe's Pub and other venues in NYC.  Now, he's starring (soon with Carly Rae Jepsen) as Topher in Rodgers + Hammerstein's Cinderella.  That's all I need to know that the future is here for this "face."






Around the City

On the Scene at Romeo and Juliet

Getting Ready for Cinderella

Jeff
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Faces of the Future: More Updates

No sooner did I post an update about my featured Faces of the Future (HERE), than I got a bunch of emails and Tweets about four of them I missed.  My apologies to all concerned - especially Nick Cartell, Jon Rua, Clay Thomson, and Andrew Brewer.  Here are updates on the four!

Andrew Brewer became a Face of the Future when he became a part of the Cougars: The Musical, playing a beefcake.  He will soon be showing off the goods in the new off-Broadway show, Sex Tips for Straight Women from a Gay Man.  He plays Stefan, "The Seductive Model."  He definitely has the body for it. Since Cougars, he's specialized in playing bullies, in the Alice Ripley-starring Carrie, and in the musical webseries, The Hinterlands.

The Hinterlands and Carrie

Nick Cartell managed to make the FotF grade despite being in the ill-fated Scandalous.  He had also been in Jesus Christ Superstar, and now, he's on tour in another Andrew Lloyd Webber classic, the "new" production of The Phantom of the Opera.

Phantom #SIP

One of my favorites in Hands on a Hardbody, which got him on this list, Jon Rua has joined the cast of the new David Henry Hwang play, Kung Fu.  The show hasn't started performances yet off-Broadway, so I can't say for sure, but I suspect some of Rua's dance ability will be put to use in this one!

The Kung Fu Artwork

Thomson and Rice

And Clay Thomson, who actually got his start in Newsies, but made the FotF list as part of the cast of Matilda, which he is still a part of. But for a couple of weeks, he'll be doing double duty as part of the ensemble of Encores! production of Little Me, which he's rehearsing now for an early February run  Plus, he appeared in the now-legendary tap dance video to the song "Cups," starring his boyfriend, and friend of this blog, Christopher Rice.

The "Cups" Video

To meet all of the Faces of the Future, please click the "Legends and Faces of the Future" tab at the top of this blog!  And if you have any updates for anyone already on the list, or have suggestions for new honorees, please Tweet me (@jkstheatrescene) or email me (jkstheatrescene@yahoo.com)!

Jeff
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FACE of the FUTURE: Cinderella's Callan Bergmann

I've actually had my eye on this talented cutie since he was part of the totally hot quartet of backup cowboys in the off-Broadway musical Lucky Guy.  I next noticed him in his funny and beautifully danced ballet dream sequence in Silence!  (He also represented that show in last year's Broadway Beauty Pageant competition!) Most recently, he's been in Encores! production of Gentlemen Prefer Blondes and in the National Tour of Disney's Mary Poppins.  Oh! And he was a featured dancer on TV's Smash.

He's not just another pretty face. He's an amazing dancer.  He also shares his talents as a teacher with Broadway Connection.  And now,  Callan Bergmann is making his Broadway debut as a swing in Cinderella.  I am CERTAIN that his is a face we will see a lot of in the future.

He's photogenic...

Lucky Guy

Silence!

Backstage at Silence! with

Christopher Gatelli and Donna McKechnie

The Broadway Beauty Pageant

The male ensemble of Gentlemen Prefer Blondes

And here he is in action at The Broadway Beauty Pageant:

Follow him on Twitter @callanjb !

Jeff
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