The show is Urinetown, and the girl on stage, wearing a flirty pink dress and heels, skips around and talks in a high-pitched voice.
This girl is nothing like the one seen crashing into the stage in an airplane in last year’s musical, The Drowsy Chaperone. Or the one found within the school, leaning against the wall across from the vending machines, looking intently at her assignment notebook.
Yet, through hard work, dedication, and passion, one girl becomes all three: junior Nina Goodheart.
Goodheart said that her love for musical theatre began at a very young age. When she was five she did an opera summer program that ended in a lip-synched performance of Mozart’s opera, The Magic Flute.
But Goodheart decided that she was going to sing. In a home video of the performance, Goodheart said that you can see her peeking out from backstage with a huge grin, seeing if the audience is applauding.
“I must have loved it, because after that, I just kept on doing show after show,” Goodheart said.
Her musical family provided encouragement. Though not professional, her father plays the piano, and her mother used to dance. Her sister also does musical theatre—singing, acting and dancing. Goodheart remembers she and her sister putting on shows in their house when they were little.
“We used to put on dresses and sing a song,” Goodheart said. “It’s a different level now, but we still sing together and perform together and have a really good time.”
In high school her dedication and passion for theatre has grown. She takes dance and vocal classes in and outside of the school, is part of Camerata Choir, and has done the musical all three years.
Goodheart said that she currently sings, acts and dances for about 21 hours each week.
“My sleep is definitely taking a hit,” Goodheart said.
Junior Tova Rubenoff, a good friend of Goodheart, said that Goodheart is one of the most determined people she knows.
“She works really hard to get everything done,” Rubenoff said. “She’ll put a lot of energy into everything, whether it’s schoolwork, her friends or theatre.”
Ezra Flam, the director of The Pajama Game, agreed. He said Goodheart is always ready for rehearsal, even taking notes and asking questions. She also pays strong attention to detail.
“She works like you would expect an actor to work—whether it’s high school, or college, or a professional actor,” Flam said. “She’s not afraid to ask questions, or share an opinion, or get involved in that way, which is good. You want an actor who is thinking enough and will talk about what they’re thinking about.”
This year, her dedication to constant improvement landed her the female lead.
“At the risk of sounding cliché, I basically started crying when I found out,” she said.
According to Flam, Goodheart fits the role perfectly. He described the character Babe Williams of The Pajama Games as someone who is really committed, cares deeply about people around her, and has a strong personal and work ethic.
“Nina plays her confidence and her self doubt really well. I think that’s because those are the sort of things that she can connect to personally,” Flam said. “She’s a good enough actor to make the character not her, but finds the moments where she can make a strong personal connection and use that to make it feel real.”
Flam also said that Goodheart has the passionate drive to succeed in the performing world outside of high school, one of her dreams.
“In the end, that’s the point that makes the most difference,” Flam said. “If you are passionate, committed, and willing to take the stuff that is difficult, along with the stuff that is easy and say, ‘I care enough about this and am not going to give up.’ And then, eventually, it happens.”
Goodheart said that she pours a lot of herself into everything she does but tries not to spread herself too thin.
“I have always wanted to be the girl who does it all. You always want to get straight A’s. You want to be in a sports team. You want to do the play,” she said. “I do my best.”
Maya Margolis can be contacted at [email protected]
