had just begun.
The week after Carmen and I had won, we had to stay in Johannesburg for a week to be available for press and media calls. In this week, it all started to slowly sink in what was happening to me. We also met our new agent for the first time, as well as did our last video blog for the High School Musical website.
After that week, I returned home where I was asked to do an interview for a local magazine called The Ridge. Seeing myself and my dog’s face on the cover of that magazine, and seeing all these newspapers articles, just reminded me of everything I had just been through, and that the bubble that I had been tucked away during the reality show had now burst, and I was beginning to realise that I would soon be performing on a massive stage, to over 2000 people a night, in what would become my musical theatre debut.
All I can say when thinking about this, is that living life knowing that I can just relax in knowing the Lord is leading me and creating opportunities right in front of me, has allowed me to enjoy every day for what it is, and constantly grow more in trusting Him and allowing Him to just have His way in my life. I mean here was, little ol’ David, embarking on all these new adventures and daily events that were all so new and exciting. Still now, more than two years later, I am constantly humbled by the realisation that I can take no credit for what I have achieved so far, as I can clearly see it has been the Lord who has paved the way for all this to happen and that no amount of luck or chance or me avoiding ladders or smashing any mirrors could have resulted with me in what I was going through.
There are some things I am so glad to have learnt sooner rather than later. One of those things is how time flies by so fast that if we are caught worrying about the future, or focussing on what we missed out in the past, we lose the opportunity to grasp the present and make every moment in our life as special as it can be.
I know I still have so much to learn and haven’t grasped that concept fully yet, but the Lord keeps on showing me how faithful He is. He is just so detailed when it comes to fulfilling the desires of my heart. When I thought there was going to be no way that I would be able to sing, suddenly I find myself engulfed in it. I am sure, like many of yours, my desire to travel had been developing since the day I was born, and an awesome sports tour to Argentina, only confirmed how much I wanted to travel.
Otherwise, I had only travelled in South Africa but that was about to change.
While performing High School Musical in Johannesburg, the producers came to us with exciting news, that China apparently might be interested in taking the show over there, and because of this, their team would be arriving to watch the show. It wasn’t long after they had seen it that we were handing our passports in to get Chinese visas, and in June of 2009, I embarked with the company on my first Asian adventure. A world so far from ours and yet only half a day away, a place that I thought I would only be able to get to if I dug down far enough in my sand pit, and yet, there I was, getting paid to do what I love and travel the world.
I was also given the chance to pursue my love for dance, as during the run of High School Musical, I auditioned and got a part in the musical Cats. This put me in a position where I would be in a musical built on dance, as well as be surrounded by professional dancers, and after hearing how demanding the show is, I knew it would further prepare me for what this industry requires.
Being cast in Cats, I knew that I had work for the following eight months after High School Musical, and in this industry to have work for even six months after you are done with a current contract, is something that is seen as very fortunate. However, it never ended there.
Before Cats had even started, we were rehearsing High School Musical before leaving for Shanghai, when the creative team from London were auditioning for Grease, which was going to include a run in Cape Town and Johannesburg, as well as a tour to New Zealand and Hong Kong. With me only really knowing the movie, I didn’t really know who to audition for and I just asked around and was told that I should go for either Doody or Roger. After the most exhausting audition I had encountered so far, all we could do was carry on with our lives and wait.
Soon after arriving back from Shanghai, I found out that I had landed the role of Eugene. Even though that was not the role I had auditioned for, I was still extremely grateful that I was going to be a part of such a massive musical. I was, however, a little apprehensive as to whether it would be a good career move, but after finding out more about the role and speaking to a few respected friends in the industry, I realised that this would be a perfect opportunity to show versatility, and a chance to play a comedy role and showcase my acting ability. This also extended my work period from eight months to fifteen months, which was such an awesome way to start off my career as it was just the Lord showing me how He was always going to provide for me.
Knowing I had work for over a year, soon after Shanghai, I went to London, seeing that part of the prize for winning was a holiday trip for two to London for five nights with a West End Show of our choice included. I had decided that instead of only going for five nights, I would wait till I had the time and extend the return flight, so that I could see all my family and friends that I had wanted to see since I was young.
So, three and a half weeks in London it was, seeing as many West End Shows as I could, finally meeting my lovely family and having the time of my life. I also had my 21st birthday over there, which I found so special, as I was in a country I had been wanting to go to since I was very little, surrounded by family, close childhood friends from back home who had moved there, as well as friends that I had made since I entered the industry.
It felt like my past, present and future had all come together on that day, and it showed how quickly things had changed in such a short amount of time.
I remember arriving back on a Friday morning and starting Cats rehearsals that next Monday. The next six weeks would prove to be very tough, rehearsing from 09:30 to 18:00 for six days a week. I had gone from never having been to a dance lesson in my life, to being a part of one the most sought after musicals for dancers, as well as having to now understudying three different tracks in the show. I grew so much and loved being challenged every single day. Whether it was fighting through injuries or standing at the end of each show knowing how much work went into getting to the end.
It was an amazing six months that I will cherish forever. My musical family was also growing, and now, with two shows under my belt. I was starting to feel at home in an industry I had known very little about growing up.
Once Cats had ended, I got the chance to go home for three weeks.
After having time to reconnect with everyone and spend some quality time with my close friends and family, I was off to Cape Town to start with the Grease rehearsal process. With a young and energetic cast, we all knew this was going to be something special, and working once again with a West End creative team, I was excited to see what this show would bring.
We rehearsed for five weeks and performed from February to June 2010 in Cape Town and Johannesburg.
During this season of my life I was going through a transformation from just serving the Lord, to actually knowing Him. I grew so much in my relationship with Him, spending time just allowing him to pour knowledge and revelation into my heart. I can honestly say that has been one of the best few months of my life.
The end of our South African run of Grease came quickly and that meant that touring would begin. We started off in New Zealand, where we performed for a month, after which I stayed to explore the rest of New Zealand for two weeks. Once that was done, I went home for two weeks and then was off to Hong Kong and, being a city that never sleeps, five weeks seemed to fly by and I found myself on a plane to Korea where I was going to see my brother, Paul, sister-in-law, Gerri, and new little niece, Olivia.
They have been teaching in Korea for the past six years and visited
