Griffin Lewis, a Music Education major in the South Carolina School of the Arts at Anderson University, won a share of first place in the 2019 National Association of Teachers of Singing (NATS) National Student Auditions (NSA) competition last month on the campus of St. Olaf College in Northfield, Minnesota.
Lewis’ win came in the Musical Theater competition, and he was a semi-finalist in the Classical category as well, placing him in the top 14 nationally.
Lewis’ professor at AU, Deirdre Welborn Francis, said his placement among the very best vocal performers in the country “is to be celebrated.”
“I am extremely proud of Griffin’s performances in both his classical and musical theater semi-final rounds,” Francis said. “He has such a beautiful voice, but he also sings with such passion and presence.”
Anderson students regularly audition at the NATS regional and national competitions. Recent regional and national-award winners include Malek McDuffie; Andrew Poston; Caroline Morris; Cory Simmons; Katie Soto; and Mariel Zmarzly, among others.
Anderson NATS students compete in the Lower College category; Lewis won the Lower College Musical Theater Men category and was a semi-finalist in the Lower College Men, Classical category.