Michael Lewis making his mark onstage - 26-year-old Jamaican accepted in the largest honour society in the US

The famous Winston Churchill once said, “We make a living by what we get, but we make a life by what we give.” For years, Michael Lewis has been pursuing his dream in theatre. That, along with his dedication to charity, unlocked the joys to living a fulfilled and purposeful life.

The Clarendonian was recently inducted into the largest honour society in the United States of America, National Society of Leadership and Success (NSLS). He was nominated by his school, the College of Albemarle (COA) in North Carolina, where he is completing a two-year programme for an associate degree in fine arts in theatre.

Selected based on academic standing and leadership potential, Lewis, through this society, has lifelong access to exclusive scholarships, leadership and academic training with persons such as Trevor Noah, networking opportunities and monetary discounts, among other benefits.

His love was discovered when one of his teachers in grade six at Denbigh Primary School encouraged him to enter his first Jamaica Cultural Development Commission (JCDC) competition. The young performer left not only with a medal but with a feeling compared to no other which made him promise to nurture his talent.

That one moment paved the way for Lewis to grace the stage of the international arena by fourth form, representing Jamaica at the World Championships of Performing Arts in Hollywood. Having done exceptionally well, he was awarded a full scholarship to attend the New York Conservatory of Dramatic Arts. But finances and parental disapproval closed that window of opportunity.

“I did not have money at that time and especially because I didn’t finish high school, my parents didn’t want me to just pack up and leave Jamaica without accomplishing something,” said Lewis. So he completed high school, travelling to Kingston on the weekend while in fifth form to do theatre arts at the Mona High School because Denbigh did not offer it at the CSEC level.

Highest grade in Jamaica

Along with 10 other subjects, Lewis received a grade one in theatre arts which was the highest grade in the island and the fourth highest in the Caribbean. He did so with the hope of attending the Edna Manley College of the Visual and Performing Arts in Kingston. This time around, he received a partial scholarship, but for the second time, his dream of dominating the theatre was stunted by lack of funding.

Much to his surprise, all his accomplishments, from being the 4-H top boy in 2011 at primary school to participating in various charity initiatives and extracurricular activities, defended his honour at the end of sixth form. Someone from a prominent American entertainment company followed Lewis’ journey through the media and anonymously awarded him a full scholarship to attend the University of The West Indies, Mona. “The person contacted my high school and said, ‘I want to send this young man to university, did he apply to a university? Is he going to do anything in performance or entertain because if he is, we are going to pay the money’,” Lewis said, still awestruck.

He pursued a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Entertainment and Cultural Enterprise Management (major) and Linguistics (minor). The 26-year-old was awarded his masters degree in Cultural Studies from the Institute of Caribbean Studies at UWI mona. “I was really thankful for that opportunity to be able to grow within my field,” Lewis shared.

Determined, however, to keep his dreams of becoming an actor alive, he enrolled in the COA with the aim to later pursue a PhD in Theatre and Performance Theory to become an entrepreneur and a lecturer.

The scholar learnt to balance his time when he got to The UWI. Now, the former Taylorite maintains a 4.0 GPA and excels equally at all he does. All of his accolades have brought some peace to his father, as choosing the performing arts was not an easy pill for him to swallow.

Lewis will be publishing his first book, Bank on Self- Investment: Belief Deposited—Triumph Withdrawn (A Stimulus Check for One’s Self), before the end of this year. The book documents his experiences with self- growth and development, and challenges people to perform practical actions that can allow them to gain momentum in their life’s goals.

It will be sold to Jamaicans and various high schools at a discounted rate. Those interested in purchasing can send an email: contact@michaeldanelewis.com.

He remains eager to serve his home country and provide assistance where needed, “I’m really looking forward to being able to help somebody the way that gentleman helped me to pursue my dream of studying something within the theatre realm.”