Windsor teen crowdfunds his way to theatre dreams

Windsor resident, Rowan Alice, is asking for his hometown’s help as he takes a big step towards his theatre dreams.

After securing a coveted acceptance email from the American Musical and Dramatic Academy (AMDA) in New York City, the 18-year-old kicked off a crowdfunding campaign to manage the big expenses of moving to the Big Apple.

“First, I started crying because I got in, and I called everyone I knew… then I started crying because I was like, how am I going to afford to live in New York for two years?” Alice said.

His decision to apply for the school, which boasts notable alumni like Jesse Tyler Ferguson, Anthony Ramos, Mike Faist, and Jason Derulo, came on impulse while watching TV one day.

“I sent in an application on my phone and then scheduled an interview that day,” said Alice.

“Then like three months later, I’m sitting on a Zoom call auditioning. And two weeks later I check my email and it said, ‘welcome to AMDA.’”

That’s when conflicting emotions came into play, according to Alice.

His love of theatre often competed with his family’s financial situation.

Difficult days as a child living below the poverty line were made better by his moments in the spotlight.

“Whenever I was up on the stage, it was kind of like it didn’t matter,” he said.

“People weren’t judging me. I got to be free from everything for a minute.”

In recent years, Alice has taken part in numerous productions with Windsor’s Arts Collective Theatre (ACT).

This past spring, he starred as Jack Kelly in the local production of Newsies.

It was also during that time he started a GoFundMe campaign, inspired by his mother and the Newsies director.

“Even if no one donated, at least it gets my story out there, right?” he said.

He set a goal of $7,500 and, as of Tuesday, had raised $2,500.

His friends at ACT were happy to see him going for his dream.

“This is huge,” said Moya McAlister, ACT Vice President.

McAlister said it’s “a big deal” for Alice to have made it into AMDA.

“And we were so proud to hear.”

She said she wasn’t surprised, calling Alice “a star.”

Alice will co-star in this fall’s ACT production of Rent, which is scheduled to run from October 4-12.

Within days of taking his last bow in that show, he’ll be in New York City with the help of some generous friends and neighbors.

“I'm just grateful for everybody donating. It's still not even real to me that people are helping like that,” said Alice.