菲利普·布朗, 希普利高中戏剧导演, considers his portrayal of Jay Jackson in Lantern Theater Company's “皇家” 成为一生的角色.

“皇家” 获得了七次巴里摩尔奖提名, including Outstanding Overall Production of a Play, with Phillip himself nominated for Outstanding Leading Performance in a Play.

The play was inspired by real-life boxer Jack Johnson, 美国拳击手, 在种族隔离最严重的时期, became the first Black world heavyweight boxing champion. Phillip spoke of the unique 挑战s this role posed, 包括物理, 精神, 情感需求. 很少有一个角色需要这三者. In addition to the strenuous physical demands of the role, it also required a level of fearlessness to navigate the heavy 精神-emotional undertones of playing such a significant character in history. Phillip’s aim was to shine a light on Jack Johnson's heroic legacy and prompt reflection on untold Black heroes. 他说，“在《冰球突破豪华版游戏》里演杰克·约翰逊... was the perfect culmination of everything I have learned as an actor.” 

Phillip sees teaching as a vital part of his creative journey, 培养自我发现, 信心, 以及学生的同理心. 他州, “当我教书的时候, I'm constantly refreshing myself with the principles that I’ve learned.“三十多年了, 从他大学早期就开始了, Phillip has been involved in teaching on mission trips with his church, bringing performing arts to inner-city neighborhoods, and ultimately finding his role as an educator where he begins his 16th year at 皮普.  Teaching serves as a pathway to refine his skills, but he has always found himself returning to the stage to perform. 他阐述了, “作为一名艺术家, I believe the ideal scenario is to continuously hone your craft while also sharing it through teaching. If you devote too much time to either one exclusively, you risk losing balance."  学生 have even attended his performances, which adds an important dimension to their learning experience, fostering trust and respect 在教室里. This trust encourages them to take greater risks when performing on stage or in the studio.

作为一个完美的专业人士, Phillip finishes by thanking his cast and crew, “I’m immensely grateful to the Lantern for selecting this play…I think they have a great director and wonderful actors, all of whom are breathing such brilliant life into these characters and really giving it their all on stage. I mean, you talk about sacrificial acting everyone’s giving of themselves in this beautiful way.” 

This year’s Barrymore Award nominations honor 43 productions. The ceremony is still being planned and a date and location will be announced soon.  We wish Phillip luck in this nomination and are proud of all he has achieved throughout his career!

Ozzie琼斯, 希普利中学戏剧导演, shares the spotlight as Theatre in the X receives a nomination for Outstanding Outdoor Production of the hit musical Dreamgirls. Stay tuned for his upcoming interview in the coming weeks as we celebrate this achievement.