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Schools

Whiz Kid: Natalie Joseph is Dearborn's Best Supporting Actress

The Dearborn Area Theatre Association honored the 17-year-old's performance with a Best Featured Actress nod.

Name: Natalie Joseph

Age: 17

School:

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Accomplishment: Joseph, who just graduated from Dearborn High, was given a PAGE award for “Outstanding Achievement by a Featured Actress in a Play – Scholastic Level” for her performance as Bernice in the farce The Musical Comedy Murders of 1940.

“I love performing,” said Joseph, who has appeared in several productions at the high school. “It’s something I always want to do.”

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Joseph was given the award by the Dearborn Area Theater Association, which is made up of local theaters and high school theater programs. The PAGE awards honor several local actors and actresses, as well as people who work to produce plays and musicals in the city.

Key to awesomeness: Many young thespians come to the stage in childhood, but in that regard, Joseph said she was a late bloomer.

“I never did anything until I was at (the high) school,” she said. “it was at that time that I decided to take the plunge and try out for productions, and now I can’t imagine not doing it.”

For Joseph, was also a member of the choir and plays several instruments, singing is a big part of stage performance. She has taken voice lessons from Natalie Clyne, who is a music and performance major at Eastern Michigan University.

This fall, Joseph will join her vocal coach at Eastern, pursuing the same course of study.

“Right now, I’m leaning towards performing, but I may also pursue a teaching certification,” she said. “But I really want to continue performing.”

Joseph said Dearborn High was a great place to hone her talent, and that she feels ready to take the stage at a college level.

“The teachers there–especially my music and language arts teachers– really cared about helping us succeed,” she said. “They did everything they could to help us out.”

In addition to performing, Joseph enjoys writing. She is the daughter of Mary Joseph of Dearborn.

It’s summer, the season that has launched tens of thousands of artistic pursuits. That means that Dearborn Patch’s Whiz Kid spotlight could feature many students entrenched in the creative process.

From acting to painting to writing short stories, the creative acumen of young people paves the way for bigger, better contributions to our cultural environment, and should be encouraged. Do you know a student who spends the summer months developing their talent? If so, we’d like to tell their story. Everyone deserves a little attention, and we want to tell these stories.

Email your Whiz Kid nominations to Editor Jessica Carreras at Jessica.carreras@patch.com. Please include the name, age, school, achievement and key to awesomeness, as well as a photo. Then come back every Wednesday for our Whiz Kid spotlight. You never know who may be smiling at you from the computer screen.

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