Dos Pueblos High School’s Andrew Diffenderfer’s 2023 Teen Star Victory
Diffenderfer’s Performance Earned the Second Standing Ovation in Santa Barbara Teen Star’s History
Andrew Diffenderfer graced the Marjorie Luke Theatre stage on October 21, sporting a plaid suit and smiling ear to ear after hearing his name called as a 2023 Teen Star finalist. Transitioning seamlessly into performance mode, he lowered his gaze, closed his eyes, and gently grabbed the microphone, eagerly awaiting the inaugural notes of Leonard Bernstein’s “Maria.”
Even though Diffenderfer secured the title of this year’s Teen Star winner, the realms of musical theater, singing, and performing weren’t always in the cards. Throughout his upbringing, he fondly remembers admiring his sister’s singing and her profound love for musical theater. In the 8th grade, Diffenderfer decided to give it a shot and performed in his school’s rendition of Les Misérables. Yet, he recognized that his voice hadn’t reached full maturity at that point, and things didn’t really click for him.
When he started as a freshman at Dos Pueblos High School, he was eager to try larger productions, and he participated in the school’s production of Beauty and the Beast. After that performance, things started to fall into place. “I realized that I developed more of a richer tone and thought, ‘This is something that I feel like I’m starting to get a lot better at,’” he said.
It was his mother who suggested that he audition for this year’s Teen Star, so he sent in the audition tape on the last day they were accepting submissions. The next thing he knew, he secured an in-person audition. “I guess we’re rolling with it,” he remembers thinking at the time. But, from the get-go, he knew he had to bring it, he told me. “I was looking at the sheet of all the people who ran, and was like, ‘I know a lot of people who are really talented on here, so I have to bring a big song.’”
For his first song, he chose “You Raise Me Up” by Josh Groban. “My great-grandma, she’s always raised me up in my life,” he said. “And I’ve always felt a deep connection with her when I sang that song.” During this performance, he slowly came out of his shell as he grabbed the microphone and lost control in the best way.
Yet, in the second round, he knew that if he wanted to win, he had to take a risk. As a devoted fan of the musical West Side Story, Diffenderfer always felt a strong connection to the song “Maria.” “I knew that was my strongest song. And I knew that if I can get to the second round, I can definitely put on ‘Maria,’” he said. For his performance, Diffenderfer channeled the rollercoaster of emotions entangled in the song as he channeled Tony from West Side Story. Diffenderfer started somewhat reserved, holding his head down before spreading his arms wide, grabbing the mic, and letting his performance explode. It may not have been obvious to the audience at the time, but this song wasn’t just Diffenderfer’s ticket to winning Teen Star — it was the moment when he fell in love with performing again.
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Before Teen Star, he said that he was uncertain about whether theater was his true calling. He found himself in a state of limbo, seeking that elusive moment on stage where everything would fall into place. And, through the help of Teen Star, he did. “Being able to sing ‘Maria’ — it’s one of my dream songs — it all came back, everything came back,” he said. “And when everyone gave me that standing ovation, it was so special.”
“It all came back right there,” he fondly recalled thinking. “This is it.”
Diffenderfer’s journey to discovering his passion for theater again after his Teen Star performance is the desired outcome of the program, Joe Lambert, the CEO and executive producer of Teen Star, said. “Our message is inspiring possibilities.”
Lambert continued, “It probably would have come back in another way with Andrew, but at least we can be a part of that journey and that story of inspiring his possibility. And that is what motivates me — that is what makes a difference.”
At 17 years old and a junior at Dos Pueblos, Diffenderfer has happily embraced the school’s theater program. He recently was in the school’s production of Almost Maine, a show about loosely intertwined love stories.
It’s no surprise that Diffenderfer’s ultimate dream is Broadway, the lead role in Phantom of the Opera, to be exact. He hopes the production will come back to the Broadway stage one day. One of his main inspirations is Canadian singer and actor Ramin Karimloo. “His music gives me chills, and I imagine myself on stage singing like that,” he said. Diffenderfer also hopes to audition for American Idol one day and attend college, majoring in musical theater at UCLA or USC.
For 14 years, Teen Star has inspired young kids, grades 7 through 12, in the Santa Barbara community to display their talents and celebrate their love for singing. One day, Lambert hopes to take the program to other communities across the nation and host a final national competition.
Teen Star winners return to the next Teen Star competition to perform “the champion song,” Lambert told me. “Now I can’t wait for next year’s Teen Star,” said Lambert. “So I can see Andrew perform again.”
See teenstar.us for more information about the program.
