Devin Trey Campbell, a 10-year-old from Pelham Bay, got his start in local community theater and dance school, and is now appearing on a national television show after performing in a Broadway hit.
Campbell is a cast member of ABC’s Single Parents, a sitcom that chronicles the lives of an ensemble cast of single parents and their children.
This role followed two and a half years on Broadway in the hit Kinky Boots, where he played the character of Young Lola, a drag queen.
Campbell tells the Bronx Times that he was drawn to theater and acting when he was three-years-old and saw The Lion King on Broadway.
“I automatically fell in love with it, and I immediately wanted to be on Broadway,” Campbell said. “It is such a good feeling to make people smile and laugh.”
He came home from the show so enthused that his parents brought him to a local theater company, Rising Stars Performing Arts and he took dance classes at Dreamakers Performing Arts in Throggs Neck.
Eventually he got an agent and manager, and said he was over the moon when he landed a role in the Broadway company of Kinky Boots.
He said that he enjoyed playing Young Lola, who is one of two main characters in Kinky Boots, and especially enjoyed the singing and dancing, as well as a part of the play where the young man tries on high heels for the first time.
After doing some ‘background work’ on television in commercials and on a popular show, he auditioned for Single Parents, and landed the role of Rory.
Through 23 television episodes this season, Campbell said that he enjoyed playing Rory, especially since the character is a fashion forward young man. Campbell especially likes the wardrobe they have for him to wear on the TV show.
Campbell did televised interviews with celebrities earlier this year on the red carpet for Nickelodeon Kid’s Choice Awards, he said.
One of the people he was excited to meet was Brandon Urie, lead singer in Panic! at the Disco.
When he isn’t acting, he likes to play video games, ride his scooter, and tap dance.
His favorite subject in school is social studies, and he attends a New York City public school.
In June, he will be displaying his acting prowess to a Bronx audience with two local performances.
On Saturday, June 1 and Sunday, June 2 Campbell will be at staring as Milo in The Phantom Tollbooth Jr. at the Open Hydrant Theater Company at The Point Community Development Corporation at 940 Garrison Avenue.
The show is a musical about a child who feels everyday life is boring. A toll booth appears in his bedroom and transports him to a magical world, where he goes on an adventure, eventually learning that ordinary life can be extraordinary.
Tickets to the show in Hunts Point can be purchased by visiting Brown Paper Bag Tickets at brown
Open Hydrant Theater Company is the only borough-based ensemble theater company serving youth.
