High School Drama: Lipscomb Academy's Spotlight Award-Winning HATTY KING

It's been a big week for Lipscomb Academy's Hatty King - last Saturday night, she had the honor of performing on the stage of Andrew Jackson Hall at Tennessee Performing Arts Center and then was presented the Spotlight Award as best actress at the Nashville High School Musical Theatre Awards - and her summer is shaping up to be even more than that...as she heads to New York City to spend a week working the best and brightest of Broadway stars and young aspiring musical theater actors from all over the country as they vie for top honors at The Jimmy Awards.

All told, 2017 has been a good year for Hatty, who will enter Lipscomb University's theater program as a freshman next fall, thanks to her BWW Nashville Award, presented in January and honoring her as best actress in a musical for her performance as Ariel in Circle Players' The Little Mermaid, directed by Brittany Blaire Andersen.

"Hatty King is magical on stage," Andersen says. "She has a natural stage presence that captivates you! She has an undeniable talent, and she will go so far!"

Her stage presence is apparent to anyone who see Hatty King onstage: her performance at TPAC last weekend enthralled the crowd, with many of the professionals and presenters standing offstage awestruck by her performance of "Astonishing" from the musical Little Women, in when she starred as Jo in the Lipscomb Academy production.

With preparations for commencement and the summer ahead occupying her every moment, Hatty sat down to answer our questions to close out her high school career as our latest subject of High School Drama - get to know her, before, well...you get my drift...

What is your theatrical goal in life? My goal is to tell stories that means something to people. Stories that inspire and challenge. Stories that change people.

If you could play any role in any show - what would you choose? Christine (from Phantom of the Opera) has been a dream of mine since I was very little. It would make seven-year-old Hatty so happy to play that role. I've also always dreamed of playing every lead female in Into the Woods as I age, that'd be cool.

What has been your best theatrical experience to date? Recently, getting to sing "Astonishing" on the TPAC stage. That song has meant so much to me for so long - I feel like it's my story-and singing on a stage that so many other performers have told inspiring stories on. And on top of all that was the support of my incredible cast, loving theatre community, and wonderful family. There are no words to describe how thankful I am for the love that was shown to me that night.

Who are your favorite actors? Sierra Boggess. Her beautiful voice is heightened by the incredible storytelling that it's infused with. I'm entranced when I watch her do anything. And she just seems so cool! Like I wanna watch a funny movie with her. Also Norbert Leo Butz will be a forever favorite. He's such an honest performer.

What show that you've never seen would you most like to see live, onstage? Oh, I've been DYING to see The Great Comet. The score is mesmerizing and I love the idea of the interactive space that I've heard the show takes place in.

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