Becca Faulk sets sights on Broadway

Photos by RAW Images and contributed

Dancer. Actress. Singer. Becca Faulk isn’t defined by just one of her many extracurricular activities. The senior at Hartselle High School is a lover of all things theatre, and she has her eyes set on Broadway.

That love started when she was a young child. The Faulk family moved to Hartselle when Becca was in the first grade, and her first taste of the spotlight was being involved in Hartselle’s community theatre troupe, the College Street Players, for its production of “Alice in Wonderland.” According to mother Jenny, after that, there was no going back for her daughter.

“I can close my eyes and still vividly picture that 7-year-old girl in the middle of the stage, and I could tell she was at home,” Jenny said. “I knew then that she loved it and would continue performing.”

More than a decade later, Becca’s resume is packed with musical theatre experience. She has been cast in countless roles with the CSP as well as the Hartselle High School drama program, the Bank Street Players in Decatur and Independent Music Production. She’s had roles in “Hello, Dolly!,” “High School Musical,” “Much Ado About Nothing,” “The Music Man” and “Mary Poppins.” She hasn’t stopped with musical theatre though – Becca is also the captain of Tiger Paws, the HHS dance line, and president of the International Thespian Society, and she sings in the high school chorus.

Becca has spent the past several months traveling the country for her various auditions. She’s performed her songs and monologues at more than 20 schools across the United States to date. Nazareth College, Baldwin-Wallace University, James Madison University and Texas Christian University are a few of the institutions she’s visited either on campus or during National Unified Auditions, a convention-like event that brings students and drama programs together.

“Being accepted to any of these schools is a two-step process,” Jenny said. “First you have to academically be accepted to the school, and then you have to audition either on campus or at a Unified event.” The mom-and-daughter duo have been to New York, Wisconsin and Chicago in recent months on a quest to find the perfect drama program for Becca.

Becca said something happens when she’s on stage and, while she’s not a shy person by any means, she said she feels like she’s fulfilling her calling when she’s performing. “I’m more completely me when I’m on stage,” said Becca – and she said her passion is something her family has always supported. “In my family, when you want to do something, they’re all in. They have helped me every step of the way to get where I want to be.”

Becca’s father Andy and her brother Logan can often be found running the tech side of the things during her shows, and when not traveling with her daughter, Jenny is involved with the College Street Players herself.

Jenny said she is impressed by her daughter and all that she’s accomplished in her 18 years. “She’s so mature and together because of this,” she said. “You fail a lot, to get to where she is, because you have to be willing to try, and you can’t be afraid to fail. It’s been fun to see her overcome things other people will never get to experience their own accomplish. She used to be terrified of auditioning, and now to watch her standing in a hallway in a studio in New York surrounded by thousands of kids and their parents … to see her be ready and watch that preparation come to fruition is impressive.”