May 24, 2006 | Arts

Students to Perform on CBS Show for Shot at Broadway

Two Northwestern University School of Communication theatre majors in the Music Theatre Certificate Program -- senior Sean Carroll and sophomore Katherine (“Kat”) Palardy -- are among the top 10 student finalists from five U.S. colleges who have been selected to perform songs from one of the current musicals on Broadway on CBS Television Network's “The Early Show.”

The students will participate in the show's upcoming six-day “My Broadway Debut” series that begins the week of May 29. The show airs from 7 to 9 a.m. Monday through Friday in the Chicago area.

Each of the 10 college finalists, five male/five female pairs, will perform alongside actors currently appearing in a Broadway musical. A performer from each of these shows will be on hand each day to introduce two of the finalists.

The winning pair will return to “The Early Show” in New York on Monday, June 5, for a final performance and to be awarded a walk-on role in one of the six participating musicals.

During the televised competition, Carroll, of Sugar Land, Texas, will sing either “Razzle Dazzle” or “All I Care About Is Love” from the Broadway musical “Chicago” Tuesday, May 30.

Palardy, from Beverly, Mass., will sing the ”Come Out Of The Dumpster” song from “The Wedding Singer” Wednesday, May 31.

CBS News producers and Broadway casting agent Bernard Telsey selected the 10 finalists from auditions that were recently held at Northwestern, Wagner College in Staten Island, N.Y., University of Michigan in Ann Arbor, University of Arizona in Tucson and Florida State University in Tallahassee.

The series also will feature an eBay auction of memorabilia from participating musicals to benefit Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS, an industry-based, not-for-profit AIDS fundraising and grant making organization.

Voting will begin after 9 a.m. Friday, June 2, when viewers nationwide will be able to log on to <CBSNews.com> to vote online for their favorite male and female finalists.