Life & Work with Meg Parker Wilson, Lisa Apple, Jack Austin, & Mikaela Phillips

Today we’d like to introduce you to Meg Parker Wilson, Lisa Apple, Jack Austin, & Mikaela Phillips. They and their team shared their story with us below:

Meg and Lisa have been living and working in DFW focused on arts and arts education for over 15 years. Most recently, they decided to become co-writers on a new musical work titled “Boy on Billboard”. This work focuses on the themes of mental illness and family. This duo is Texas-based and thrilled about the artistic endeavors happening in the Dallas area as a hub for new musical works! To shed light on the uniqueness of the work we asked the leads of this new musical to share in their own words, what the process has been like:

JACK AUSTIN (JAMES APPLE): is a critically acclaimed singer, performer, actor, and songwriter. He is currently a student at Western Michigan University obtaining a Bachelor of Fine Arts in musical theatre performance. Jack has also gained mass exposure on the video-sharing app TikTok for his singing content and has gained over 15 million views and over 75k followers on the app.

MIKAELA PHILLIPS (ELLIE APPLE): is an up-and-coming talent, actor, singer, and choreographer. She has been performing for 13 years. She has starred in many works, including Belle in (Beauty and the Beast), Little Red in (Into the Woods), Urleen (Footloose), and Christine Colgate in (Dirty Rotten Scoundrels). She has been choreographing in the DFW metroplex for five years for both musicals and choir concerts.

MIKAELA: From the start, I could just tell it would become something more special and meaningful than any other show I would ever do. Creating something new seemed so exciting, so I knew it was an opportunity that I couldn’t pass up. When I auditioned for Boy On Billboard I had just been cast in another show, and I had to pick one or the other. While emailing back and forth with Meg, I could tell that they were so loving and actually cared about me as a person, not just as a performer; which I feel is a huge deal in this industry. So, with that, I decided to dive into this new work having no idea what, if anything, would come from it. I just wanted to push myself to try something that scared me. I can tell you now that it was one of the best decisions I have ever made.

JACK: I had never had a magical gut feeling like the one I had when I was asked to be a part of Boy on Billboard. I was told the story and the message of the show and found it to be so incredibly special. I immediately said, “yes”. My heart was telling me that it was meant to be. Boy on Billboard found me at the perfect time when I had just had a difficult year myself. I related to the show, and I wanted to be a part of sharing stories that just don’t get told enough. Stories that will spread awareness, enact change, and save lives. I just had the magical gut feeling. And my gut was right.

MIKAELA: Ellie is outwardly super optimistic and confident. She wants to come across as having it all put together, but deep down she’s lost and feels like she’s letting her family down. Through helping James get back on his feet, Ellie feels like she has something that she is working towards again. She has to learn that she needs to let go of the things she can’t control. I love playing Ellie because I get the chance to be more vulnerable on stage than I ever have been. Through creating and experiencing this role, I have been able to look back on my own life and realize that it’s ok to not be in control and that sometimes I need to face my fears to overcome them.

JACK: I love playing James because he’s a contagious personality. You can’t help but fall in love with him, his humour, and his love for others. You really get to know James because you see it all: the good, the bad, the ugly, and everything in between. That’s so special. He’s relatable and so refreshing.

I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
This story is based on true events and stories from real people across the DFW Metroplex. The title was inspired by the day that James Apple made the news by standing naked on a billboard in downtown Fort Worth.

MIKAELA: It has been daunting to say the least. Lisa and Meg have put so much of their own story into Ellie, so making sure that I portray that in such a way that honors them each time was intimidating. As I began to discover who Ellie was in the script, I realized how similar I was to her. That sounds like it would make it super easy, but no. I love playing characters that are very different from me in order to escape my world and be someone that I’m not. In a way, the most difficult part of creating this role has been learning to get on stage and embrace reality rather than run away from it. While the character herself might be new, her hopes, dreams, and struggles are very much like my own, so getting to put bits of myself into her has been as exciting as it is challenging.

JACK: I had never played a role that was a real person before Boy on Billboard. It’s a lot of pressure-an honor. I want to make sure I’m respectful, and I don’t ever want to mess it up; especially with the important subject matter of the show and the fact that the composer is James’ sister. There’s also the constant battle and balance of making James my own character but also staying true to the real person that James was. That’s something I feel like I’ll never want to stop working and improving on. But because James is so relatable, I can often find myself in him as well.

MIKAELA: I hope that people learn to take time to love others above anything else. You never know all the details of what is going on in someone else’s life, so you need to lead with kindness and compassion. I hope this show helps us to start having more open and honest conversations and to know that it’s okay to ask for help. This world we live in is a scary place, and no one should have to face it alone.

JACK: I hope people check in with family, friends, loved ones, and even strangers. You never know when you could save a life. I hope people recognize it’s okay to not be okay. I hope we can normalize asking others for help even though it’s difficult.

Thanks – so, what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
After it’s successful premier production in May 2023, the show is currently being prepared for some future stage opportunities!

MIKAELA: Everything!! Meg and Lisa have pushed me in ways I didn’t know I needed to be pushed. They have helped me to grow in every way possible. When we first started talking after I sent in my audition, they were so loving and kind. It made me feel like this show is where I belong before I even truly met them or read their script. I also knew that no matter how heavy the material was, we would always have a good laugh. Finding joy in the midst of heartache can be difficult, but they always do, and it is a beautiful thing to watch. I aspire to be more and more like them every day.

JACK: I love working with Meg and Lisa because they provide such a warm, fun, and safe environment on and off stage. Their selflessness and desire to make the world a better place is truly inspirational. I can say for certain that they have made me a better person through the love and light they bring into this world. They truly are the dream team.

JACK: Every performance in one of my character’s most emotional scenes, I would flip a chair from under myself out of frustration. At the last performance of the premiere weekend, I flipped my chair behind me, never looking back as per usual, and I heard gasps from the audience. I was like, “Oh wow, Jack that must have been a really good dramatic chair flip”. That was until I got offstage and looked over to see that I had flipped my chair completely over, and it landed right side up like it had never been flipped. All I could think to myself was poor Mikaela who saw it land right back up and had to hold it together.

MIKAELA:  A memorable moment during the premier was definitely the chair flip! There’s a very intense scene during Act Two when James throws his chair down in anger. Well, at this performance, Jack flipped it, and it landed right side up. I’m sitting there trying to look terrified, all while trying not to laugh because it was amazing, and Jack had no idea what he had just done. I had to continue in the very intense scene for another ten minutes while the chair was just standing there. I could go on and on about all of the funny moments we had, but this one was my favorite by far.

Image Credits
Steve Sickman
Nate Allen Wilson