Local actor lands Lincoln Center role

Jacob Simmons, a 2026 Ohio University musical theater graduate from Covington, Louisiana, performed at New York’s Lincoln Center this year as one of 10 finalists in the American Pops Orchestra’s NextGen National vocal competition. Ohio University said in an Aug. 5 story that Simmons took part in the final round after a path that began in high school theater in Covington. The university also said Simmons had first built his stage experience largely in straight plays before discovering he could sing. Ohio University’s alumni event page said Simmons had advanced to the finals from a field of about 500 auditionees nationwide. ### How did Simmons get to Lincoln Center? April 12 was the date Simmons performed as one of 10 finalists in the NextGen National competition, according to Ohio University’s Aug. 5 profile. The university said the contest gave collegiate vocalists a chance to learn from industry professionals while competing for scholarship money and paid performance opportunities with the American Pops Orchestra. (ohio.edu) Ohio University’s alumni listings for the event said Simmons first made the semifinal round and then earned an all-expenses-paid trip to New York for the finals. The same event materials said the final concert was held at the David Rubenstein Atrium at Lincoln Center and was free and open to the public. (ohio.edu) ### What did he say about discovering his voice? Covington, Louisiana, is where Simmons said his musical theater path began during his freshman year of high school. “It was the end of my freshman year of high school,” Simmons told Ohio University. “I was just being loud in the back of the theater, singing to myself or something.” (giving.ohio.edu) Simmons said someone heard him, told him he “can kind of sing,” and pushed him to audition for the school musical. Ohio University said that moment shifted him from mostly straight plays toward singing roles that eventually led to formal musical theater training. ### What did he perform in the competition? (ohio.edu) “Bridge Over Troubled Water” and “Old Devil Moon” were the two songs Simmons prepared for the final round, according to Ohio University. The university said “Old Devil Moon” comes from the 1947 Broadway musical “Finian’s Rainbow.” Simmons told Ohio University the competition focused on “uplifting and keeping the Great American Songbook and all these jazz standards in the public eye.” He also said the American Pops Orchestra runs educational outreach programs centered on music. (ohio.edu) ### What role did Ohio University play? (ohio.edu) Ohio University said Simmons learned about the NextGen contest through a message from the School of Theater as he neared the end of his bachelor’s degree. Simmons told the university he submitted a video audition and then continued with his routine until he learned he had been named a semifinalist and later a finalist. (ohio.edu) Ohio University’s School of Theater describes its B.F.A. in performance — acting and musical theater — as a program built around acting, movement, and voice and speech training. The university’s theater school also says it aims to build bridges between educational and professional communities. ### What does the story say about where he came from? (ohio.edu) Covington schools in Ohio are a separate district serving more than 800 students on one campus, but Simmons’ story as published by Ohio University places his hometown in Covington, Louisiana. The university’s profile identifies him as having started in high school theater there, and no source reviewed for this report tied him to Covington, Ohio. (webcmsqa.ohio.edu) August 5, 2026, is when Ohio University published its account of Simmons’ Lincoln Center appearance, and the school’s event pages preserve the competition details from January. Those records identify Simmons by name, place him in the final round of the American Pops Orchestra’s NextGen National competition, and locate the performance at the David Rubenstein Atrium at Lincoln Center in New York. (ohio.edu)