For my fifth grade talent show I received the “Future Heart Throb of America” award for my rendition of an N*Sync classic. Needless to say, I did not have to search hard for my inner heart throb when becoming Link Larkin, because my elementary school principal had already told me I was going to be one. In my short career as an actor I have never played a romantic lead, so when I was given the role of Link I was excited for the challenges ahead of me. When preparing for this role in Hairspray, I wanted to take a thoughtful approach. Link is focused on one thing, himself, until the groundbreaking extremist Tracy Turnblad changes his perspective. Link has one of the biggest character changes from the beginning of the show to the end, going from a self-involved Elvis wannabe to a liberal protester. I wanted to make this character arc apparent to the audience. Making Link my own was an added challenge, because most of the general public uses Mathew Morrison (original Link on Broadway) and Zac Efron (Link in 2007 movie version) as reference points, but I did not want to imitate either of their performances. With wonderful direction, an electric score, and talented cast, Hairspray will surely rock the Dock!
