Two High School Students Win Best Actor, Best Actress at 2025 DPAC Rising Star Awards

On May 29, 2025, DPAC presented The DPAC Rising Star Awards, central North Carolina’s High School Musical Theatre Awards, with host Clay Aiken and special guest, J. Harrison Ghee. Josiah Jennings from Hillside High School won the coveted DPAC Rising Stars Best Actor award and Carmen Sophia Dubon from Weaver Academy won the DPAC Rising Stars Best Actress award.  The DPAC Rising Star Awards were presented by Blue Cross and Blue Shield of North Carolina.

The DPAC Rising Star Awards (Rising Stars) celebrates outstanding achievement in high school musical theatre, by focusing attention on the meaningful work being done both on and off stage by dedicated teachers and students. 

Rising Stars also serves as the regional competition as part of the National High School Musical Theatre Awards® (NHSMTA).  This regional competition is open to high school musical theatre productions and musical theatre students in Central North Carolina.

This year’s Rising Star Awards featured the return of an opening group number that included students from each of the 39 participating local high schools.  Approximately 60 students represented their schools in this special performance.

"What an awesome year for The DPAC Rising Star Awards!" said Megan Rindoks, DPAC's Director of Community Engagement. "We had students involved both on and off the stage, handling lighting design, wardrobe and props, stage management, and more. We also had twenty incredibly talented Finalists deliver stellar performances on the DPAC stage — I am so proud of each student involved. And, I am thrilled for Josiah Jennings and Carmen Sophia Dubon, I am confident that they will represent DPAC and Central, NC very well in NYC for the Jimmy Awards."

2025 DPAC RISING STAR AWARDS WINNERS:
Best Actor: Josiah Jennings – Durham, NC

In the role of Patrick Star in the Hillside High School production of The Spongebob Musical

Best Actress: Carmen Sophia Dubon – Greensboro, NC

In the role of DeeDee Allen in the Weaver Academy production of The Prom

Best Ensemble (Tier 1): The Wiz, East Wake I Tech & Design Magnet High School in Wendell, NC

Best Ensemble (Tier 2): Shrek The Musical, Cardinal Gibbons High School in Raleigh, NC

Best Musical (Tier 1): Something Rotten, Millbrook High School in Raleigh, NC

Best Musical (Tier 2): Hadestown Teen Edition, RJ Reynolds High School in Winston-Salem, NC

Best Student Choreography: Disney’s The Little Mermaid, Wake Forest High School in Wake Forest, NC

Best Student Lighting Design: Seussical The Musical, American Leadership Academy - Johnston in Clayton, NC

Best Student Costume Design: Big Fish School Edition, C. E. Jordan High School in Durham, NC

Best Student Orchestra: Little Shop of Horrors Durham School of the Arts in Durham, NC

Best Dancer: Chloe Howard – Winston-Salem, NC, In the role of Persephone in the R.J. Reynolds High School production of Hadestown Teen Edition

The DPAC Shining Star Award: Nicolas Sanchez in Raleigh, NC, In the role of Frump in the Enloe High School production of Between The Lines

New York Film Academy Scholarship Recipients

Campbell Dean – Winston-Salem, NC, In the role of Eurydice in the R.J. Reynolds High School production of Hadestown Teen Edition

Carmen Sophia Dubon – Greensboro, NC, In the role of DeeDee Allen in the Weaver Academy production of The Prom

Carson Ohrel – Wake Forest, NC, In the role of Scuttle in the Wake Forest High School production of Disney’s The Little Mermaid

Josiah Jennings – Durham, NC, In the role of Patrick Star in the Hillside High School production of The Spongebob Musical

Mollie Reeves – Raleigh, NC, In the role of Fiona in the Cardinal Gibbons High School production of Shrek The Musical

As Central North Carolina’s qualifying event for the National High School Musical Theatre Awards®, The DPAC Rising Star Awards Best Actor and Best Actress recipients each received a $2,000 scholarship and were invited to attend the NHSMTA® in New York City this summer.  This all-expense paid trip allows students from across the country to train with Broadway actors, directors and producers. Their week of coaching, auditions and rehearsals concludes with a sold-out performance on Broadway at the Minskoff Theatre (Home of Disney’s The Lion King©) where the coveted Jimmy™ Awards® for Best Performance by an Actor and Best Performance by an Actress are announced.

“Blue Cross and Blue Shield of North Carolina is proud to support The DPAC Rising Star Awards, a program designed to celebrate outstanding achievements in high school musical theater,” said Cheryl Parquet, Director of Community Engagement at Blue Cross NC.  “The arts enrich our lives beyond measure, and they are the key to the health of any community.  The DPAC Rising Star Awards not only provides the student finalists with potentially life changing opportunities that could jumpstart a career in the arts, but it also shines a spotlight on the amazing arts programs and dedicated arts teachers in our area.”

The event was directed by Freddie Lee Heath (Director of Choreography), David Henderson (Acting Director) and Mark Hopper (Music Director).  50 students representing high schools from across the Central NC region opened the show with “Be Our Guest” from Disney’s Beauty and the Beast, which included a special performance from Clay Aiken and built up to welcome the top 20 finalists to the DPAC stage.  In groups of five, each student had their own chance to shine in medley performances.  Act One closed with the top 20 finalists performing “Highlights from Wicked” from WICKED.  Act Two opened with a special performance of “All That Jazz” from Chicago featuring special guest and Tony Award winner, J. Harrison Ghee alongside our Top 20 Student Finalists.

Alex Fluker and Conor Kruger returned to DPAC and sang “Tonight” from the musical West Side Story before announcing this year’s awards for Best Actor (Josiah Jennings) and Best Actress (Carmen Sophia Dubon).  After the awards were presented, the entire cast of finalists closed out the evening with “Hear My Song” from Songs for a New World.

This year, the Top 20 Student Finalists were adjudicated by an esteemed panel of guest judges including Meredith Blair, Alan Campbell, and Courtney Liu.

The DPAC Rising Star Awards are made possible by Blue Cross and Blue Shield of North Carolina. Thank you to ABC11, Duke University, McGregor Hall, Root Media, Durham Art Guild, SCAD, and New York Film Academy for being community partners of the DPAC Rising Star Awards.