Then in April he was thrilled when told he’d won the part of Tick’s son, Benji to be shared with three other boys.
Exciting as it was being selected for Priscilla, Kieran was disappointed that intensive rehearsals in mid-May meant missing his Year Six Point View Primary School camp.
“I was really annoyed about missing camp but it was fun rehearsing because we had entertainment like basketball and puzzles. The full cast was only there for the last day of the week.”
Since Priscilla opened in Auckland six weeks ago, Kieran has been performing two nights a week, primarily as Benji but also in a couple of other minor parts.
“I come on in the first half dressed as Bindi Irwin and in the second half I play Benji,” says the confident youngster who is never nervous.
“My favourite part is the finale when I’m dressed as a kangaroo. That’s when all of the audience really gets into it and so does the cast. Inside the bus is really awesome.”
Off stage, Kieran is chaperoned and entertained. At the beginning of the Priscilla experience, his stage dad, Jeremy Stanford gave him a notebook and it now contains encouraging messages from the cast.
Because of its risqué nature, show management asked parents how they wanted the trans-sexual topic approached.
Kieran’s parents openly discussed the theme with him using the opportunity to give him an adult’s perspective and dispel misinformed schoolyard chatter.
“I’ve learnt about just being yourself and not worrying about who you are because that’s the moral of the story,” Kieran says.
Experience from school productions and singing lessons with Janice Webb have nurtured Kieran’s talent while family, friends and school staff have supported him in his Priscilla role.
But that’s not the end of it.
Next on Kieran’s agenda is auditioning for Christmas in the Park, trying for more advertisement, television and movie roles and the chance to enjoy some of his hard earned money on a planned family holiday to Disneyland next year.
