Alex Armstrong remembers performing in his first production at 9 years old, playing the title role in "Oliver!" through the Columbia Children's Theater. Looking back on it, the now 17-year-old laughed because he remembers constantly smiling, even when his character was supposed to be sad.
"That's how I knew, especially hearing it now, that this isn't just a hobby for me - it's something I'm going to always do because it was that immediate happiness that I got from it," he said.
Since then, Armstrong hasn't stopped acting, rarely missing the chance to perform in front of crowds.
Armstrong is a regular face in productions put on by Capital City Productions and Fulton High School. Between the two groups, the high school senior has performed in productions like "Newsies," "Shrek the Musical," "The Little Mermaid," "Tarzan The Musical," "Mama Mia!" "Cinderella" and "Annie, Get Your Gun!"
The plethora of productions means Armstrong must embody a new character every month or two. That includes his upcoming role as Bert in "Mary Poppins" from Feb. 13-15 at Fulton High School.
One of the many characters Armstrong has embodied was Jack Kelly, a cocky but charismatic leader in Disney's "Newsies." Armstrong said he is most proud of that 2018 CCP production because he was "completely that character the entire time."
"It isn't easy so it's rewarding to completely erase what you would do in a situation you're given with the script and put what they would do into it," Armstrong said.
To hone in on each character's personality, the young actor pulls from personal experiences.
When Armstrong started his freshman year of high school, he struggled to balance being a typical teenager and building his acting career. Around that time, Armstrong played the title character in "Tarzan The Musical," in which Tarzan struggled to find a balance between being a human and an ape.
Armstrong eventually learned to juggle the two lives - working on homework backstage during rehearsals or memorizing lines during free time at school.
Pulling from personal experience can be tricky though since it's easy to get too involved in what the character is feeling, Armstrong said.
"It's always a dangerous mix but it's also the most rewarding because it gives you catharsis," he said. "That's something I like doing a lot, using the character I'm trying to play to give myself a therapy session. With my balance thing, at the end of the show, he figures it out so there's no way I can't figure this out."
Armstrong's talent didn't go unnoticed. He was recently voted the best local actor in Missouri's Best 2020, through Missouri Magazine. He beat out eight other nominees, including Brad Pitt and John Goodman.
"Now I get to say I'm an actor, and I am known across Missouri for what I do," Armstrong said. "It's cool to get the recognition and win an award for acting and knowing that people look at what I'm doing."
CCP was also voted the best live theater group and dinner show in Missouri Magazine.
Armstrong has sharpened his acting talent for almost a decade, and he can trace his passion for musical theater to a young age.
At 5 years old, Armstrong knew singing would be part of his livelihood but it wasn't until two years later that he found his path in life.
When he was 7 years old, Armstrong was left speechless after watching "The Lion King" Broadway musical at the Fox Theater in St. Louis.
He now creates those speechless moments in others through musical theater.
"That's what I can give to other people - even if they're 50, 100, it doesn't matter - because we are all humans," he said. "No matter how cold-hearted they are when they come into it, there's something in you that reacts to watching good theater on stage. Even if you hate musical theater or you hate the songs there's something in you that is healed or reacted to that emotionally. That is the most rewarding part, getting to do that."
This reaction is one of the reasons why his favorite scene comes from his first CCP production, "Les Misérables."
At 12 years old, Armstrong played Gavroche, a young boy involved in a revolution in Paris. In "Les Misérables," Gavroche dies after being shot, falling into the arms of his friends.
"They would carry me in this big ensemble and lay me down at the front of the stage and then one of them would close my eyes, and the crowd was dead silent," Armstrong recalled. "That was one of the best feelings because I would think, 'I just destroyed that scene.'"
It was that silence and those feelings of excitement that solidified Armstrong's career choice.
Now, five years later, Armstrong said he has formed dozens of friendships and memories through CCP.
"These are people I would've never gotten to be friends with and people who have given me life advice and people who have taken me under their wing and who I absolutely adore," he said. "It's amazing how good they are to someone like me, and they call me the future because that's what we are."
This year is also a new future for CCP. The local dinner theater recently moved from Shikles Auditorium - where it called home for more than a decade - to 719 Wicker Lane.
When Armstrong walked into CCP's new home Jan. 28, his eyes grew wide and his jaw dropped when he saw the stage he will soon perform on. Sitting on one of the props that evening, he gazed around the large auditorium, smiling from ear-to-ear.
"In the old place, we loved it and it was awesome to get to perform there but there were always restrictions that we had," he said. "Now, what are we going to do with all of this space? There's so much. I'm really excited to see anything here and do something here."
As CCP starts its new chapter, Armstrong is preparing for his - college. While Armstrong has not selected a college yet, he is set on majoring in musical theater.
"There's never been a stray in my mind about what I'm going to do so I think it feels very good and very, very rewarding to know that I've had the success I've had and put the work I've put into it," he said.