The moment Brock Bourek’s life changed was the same moment he was handed a simple nail.
After his first role at his community’s theater his junior year of high school, he stood on the stage after all the props had been cleared off, thinking about all he had just accomplished. It was at that time that the director walked up to him, handed him a nail from the set and said, “Brock, you nailed it. Good job.”
At that moment, Bourek knew with every fiber of his being that he wanted to be an actor. He carries that nail with him as a reminder of all he has accomplished. And now, in the college world, he has achieved something that could open even more doors in his future.
Bourek now has the chance to showcase his skills on a broader scale than ever before, as he has been selected to participate in the Kennedy Center American College Festival’s Irene Ryan Acting Scholarship competition along with Jaden Lux. Bourek and a partner, Travis Metzger, will perform against other college students across the country.
Bourek was chosen after his most recent role in “True West”, where Morningside College asked a respondent from the Kennedy Center to come and watch the show to talk to cast members afterwards about all the different aspects. Then one or two actors were chosen based on how well they did in the show and how they answered the questions asked afterwards by the respondent.
Students will compete for a week in January where there are three levels with different time limits. The first level is where Bourek will perform a monologue and a scene with his partner, Metzger, all under three minutes. Only 32 groups advance after this round.
In the next round Bourek will perform two of the pieces he has prepared from the play “Death of a Salesman” with Metzger in under five minutes.
He will then perform the same two scenes and monologue with Metzger. This level has to be under six minutes.
Professor Clemens recognizes the challenge of working with such a short deadline, but recognizes how much talent Bourek has, strengthening his faith in his performance ability during the upcoming festival.
“What Brock’s real strong suit is is that he is willing to make choices…he likes to do the work, he’s a hard worker. He has a really good work ethic. And again, he’s young and he’s green yet, so there’s certain things that he needs to learn and just get used to doing, so I mean just the fact that he’s still so young is kind of a weakness. His strong work ethic is what will really help him out,” Clemens said.
Bourek will be in the first group of Morningside College students that are involved with the Kennedy Center Festival, and Professor Clemens hopes to make this year become the norm. He hopes to get funds for other theater students to go to the festival every year and get the insight, networking, and coaching from the workshops that are provided every year for students no matter what their involvement in the competition.
Bourek is beyond excited for the competition. He told his mom and girlfriend as soon as he knew and hopes he will make it all the way to the end despite the short timeline for preparation. He definitely believes he was born to be an actor, his life would be very dull without it.
Growing up in Columbus, Nebraska, Bourek performed many skits for friends and family, but it wasn’t until he was in third grade that acting became a real passion for him. His mom asked if he wanted to be a part of a children’s theater group and Bourek hasn’t stopped acting since, resulting in his involvement in over forty performances where he has been an actor as well as a director, with a particular emphasis in singing roles. His favorite part remains the response from the people who attend his shows.
“The most rewarding part is afterwards, um, just going out, you know, into the lobby and saying, ‘Hey’, you know, ‘thanks for coming’, and people just going ‘Wow, that was good, that was really good’, or ‘That was incredible, that was the best thing I’ve ever seen’, you know, and things like that. That just, that’s what brings joy to my heart is that I love the fact that my acting can inspire others, that it can influence people, it can get people to think a certain way, that they can change their mind about a certain viewpoint.”
Bourek often finds inspiration in Hollywood films for his acting today. He says “I love watching movies. Most people watch movies because they just love the enjoyment of what’s going on in the movie, where I love watching movies to find other things that actors do.”
In the world of specific talented celebrities, Bourek enjoys the acting abilities of several different male actors who inspire his own work. “One of my favorite people to watch is actually James Franco. A lot of people think that I have like a man crush on him or whatever but he is a phenomenal actor who is very underrated. He always brings something new to the table and has all these little quirks about him. And I also think Dustin Hoffman and Tom Hanks are phenomenal as well.”
Over the years as Bourek has found inspiration and grown in the acting world, he has struggled with memorization, but with the knowledge of new techniques, he gets more confident in his lines every day.
He also faces setbacks just by being very young in a world where experience and age can get you further in acting. Facing auditions where he isn’t sure how he will be perceived and how badly he wants to get certain parts also causes some issues for Bourek, but with his friendly and welcoming personality, it’s hard to find someone who doesn’t like him. As his acting partner Metzger pointed out, “I met him last year when he was a freshman and my first impression was ‘Wow, this is a great guy.’ I don’t think I’m wrong, I think Brock is a wonderful person and he’s just very welcoming and warm and open.”
Professor Taylor Clemens echoed those sentiments, adding how much he believed in Bourek’s abilities. “You know, actually, honestly, my first impression was that there was actually quite a bit of potential in him acting wise, he just is very exuberant. He is a very happy kind of guy. It just seemed like he had a good attitude and the right attitude for this profession actually.”
With all of his years of experience, Bourek has acquired many strengths. He excels in improv and is always open to learning, a skill that both the assistant professor of theater, Taylor Clemens, and Bourek’s acting partner, Travis Metzger agree with, as Professor Clemens especially pointed out how Bourek is good at making decisions in acting and sticking with them, a skill accomplished actors need to have.
Because of his skills, Bourek’s dream job would be to work at SNL, a goal he believes is entirely reachable, but he has decided for more realistic purposes to pursue a job with Missoula Children’s theater, the same company that first got him started in serious acting in third grade.
As Bourek moves on to the competition, his advice to fellow actors is simple.
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