The national tour of a Broadway hit will feature a Macon-grown star.
Grey Henson, who caught the theater bug at Macon Little Theater and Theater Macon, will play Elder McKinley in "Book of Mormon," nominated for 9 Tony awards, including best musical.
"My part is basically a glorified ensemble member," said Henson in a Skype interview with 13WMAZ's Judy Le. "But I get a little moment in the spotlight which is great. I also get to do the fun chorus numbers too."
"The Book Of Mormon" is a satire about Mormon missionaries in Uganda. Henson starts rehearsing Monday. He says his character "is a closeted homosexual, and that's a big no-no in the church."
His mom, Paige Henson, knew Grey was meant for stardom when he was only six years old.
"I was cooking dinner and he tugged on my skirt and he said, 'Mommy, can I have a spot of tea?' I laughed and I thought maybe it's a past life thing," says Paige.
Henson comes from a musical family. His dad, Johnny Henson, taught Grey his first few songs.
"I remember him singing 'Help Me Rhonda." That just comes to my mind," says Johnny.
In "The Book of Mormon," the 22-year-old sings 'Turn it Off.' To get into character, he recalls his younger years. "And trying to remember what it was like to be 19 and scared. I mean I'm only 22. Well, tomorrow is my 22nd birthday. You know, what it was like to be kind of" on your own journey.
Paige is convinced he's taking broadway by storm to meet a bigger star.
"I think that all of this is about positioning himself to meet and get his picture taken with Tina Fey," she says
There are the tour dates:
Denver, CO The Ellie Caulkins Opera House August 14 - September 2, 2012
Los Angeles, CA The Pantages Theatre September 5 - November 25, 2012
San Francisco, CA The Curran Theatre November 27- December 30, 2012
Portland, OR Keller Auditorium January 1- January 6, 2013
Seattle, WA The Paramount January 8- January 20, 2013
Des Moines, IA Civic Center of Greater Des Moines January 24- February 3, 2013
Minneapolis, MN The Orpheum Theatre February 5- February 17, 2013
St. Louis, MO The Fox Theatre February 19- March 3, 2013
Rochester, NY The Auditorium Theatre March 5- March 10, 2013
Detroit, MI The Fisher Theatre March 12- March 24, 2013
Pittsburgh, PA The Benedum Center March 26- April 7, 2013
Boston, MA The Boston Opera House April 9- April 28, 2013
Toronto, ON TBD April 30- June 9, 2013
Buffalo, NY Shea's Performing Arts Center June 11- June 16, 2013
Cleveland, OH The Palace Theatre June 18- July 7, 2013
Washington DC The Kennedy Center July 9- August 18, 2013