A young musical theater performer who is motivated to make it big, Timothy Scott Brausch is a

name to remember.

Timothy Scott Brausch: Dancer, Singer, Actor

Camille Renner

Walking out of Palace Theatre into the crowded Manhattan streets, Timothy Scott

Brausch, 6 feet tall and 16 at the time, was fueled by the inspiration he just witnessed on the

Broadway stage. It was his first time seeing “An American in Paris,” starring Robbie Fairchild

and Leanne Cope, and the grace in which the professionally trained ballet dancers controlled the

stage inspired Brausch. Upon returning home from his trip to NYC, Timothy, with little

experience in theater and none in dance, immediately joined Summit Dance Company in

Concord, NC and began training, setting off the chain of reactions that would begin his career in

Musical Theater.

Now 20 years old, Brausch attends Elon University, pursuing a degree in Musical

Theater, or as he abbreviates it, MT. Elon, an unassuming university in central North Carolina

with roughly 6,000 students, has proven themselves to have a successful Musical Theater

program. According to Playbill, in last year’s season, alumni from Elon were the 10th most

represented on the Broadway Stage, following behind notable programs from more established

schools such as Juilliard. As a native of Concord, NC, Timothy’s decision to go to Elon was not

only due to the proximity to home, but of the integrity and success of the university’s MT

program. However, that was no small feat. Brausch himself attributes his acceptance into Elon

partly back to the night he first saw his favorite musical, “An American in Paris.” “I really feel

like that helped me get into Elon,” Brausch reflects on his dance training inspired by the show,

“...I had no idea what I was doing before that, but I worked really hard to get where I am now so

hopefully one day I‘ll get to play Jerry Mulligan,” Brausch remarked, referring to his dream role
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as the leading man in “An American in Paris.”

Timothy, who first began training in dance at the age of 16 and acted in his first musical

just a year or two before that, considers himself to be a late bloomer compared to his MT peers.

Yet he has found that this disadvantage has been a driving force in his success. “It hasn’t seemed

to affect me badly,” Brausch says of his late start, “it actually seems to motivate me more

because I just feel like it was something I chose. It wasn't something my parents made me do as a

kid...it is something that I found by myself.” Whether from this motivation, a huge stroke of

luck, authentic talent, or maybe a combination of all three, it is indisputable that Timothy has

already been victorious in his budding career in Musical Theater. When Timothy’s close friend,

Anna Young, who actually was the first person to encourage him to audition for their high school

musical, was asked if she was surprised by his instant success, she quickly responded that she

wasn’t. “No, I’m not really shocked, he’s always been good at everything,” Young explained. If

Brausch truly is good at everything, it can be assumed that an outstanding work ethic is at play.

In the fall of 2019, Brausch earned the lead role of young Joe Hardy in Elon’s production

of “Damn Yankees,” the Tony Award winning Broadway musical set in the baseball world of the

1950s. Considering the multitude of talented alumni that have come out of Elon’s musical theater

program such as Barrett Wilbert Weed of “Heathers”​ a​ nd “Mean Girls” and Taylor Trensch of

“Dear Evan Hansen,” it can be assumed that the program is made up of extremely skilled

individuals, and the lead role is a coveted position. Before the show premiered, Deb Leamy, the

production’s choreographer, was quoted saying, “I have such a talented cast. It has been a joy

and the cast’s work ethic has been stellar.” With that in mind, it seems improbable that a

sophomore, with less training than older performers who also had talent and a good work ethic,

would merit the lead. Nonetheless, Timothy Brausch became Joe Hardy. “Lead [roles] have
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historically gone to upperclassmen because of deeper experiences.” Leamy, a Broadway vet and

MT professor, unfolded, “But Tim brought something truly special to the audition, and

subsequent role, that it was worth taking a shot!” This feat is accredited by Brausch himself to

possibly be the result of a guest director casting “Damn Yankees​.”​ ​ “T

​ here was no biased opinion

of the students, he didn’t know any of us so it was a fresh introduction,” Brausch said of the

“Damn Yankees”​ ​director, “I think that may have been helpful to me, maybe he didn’t realize I

was a sophomore; it didn't matter what grade I was in. It was just purely based on who was right

for the role, which I was just grateful for.”

Although he was overjoyed to play the lead character, Timothy remains modest when

addressing his own achievements. He hesitates to call his success at Elon unique while looking

down and revealing the dimples that appear when he smiles and adding that his peers have said it

is unusual. He admits, however, that his success as just a second year MT student has gained him

recognition from professional productions. “I was going to perform in ‘Chicago’ at Virginia

Repertory Theatre.” Brausch revealed, “When I went in for that audition, the director saw Joe

Hardy in ‘Damn Yankees’​ a​ nd knew that I was a sophomore and said to me that he was super

impressed that, as a sophomore, I got that role.” “Chicago”​ ​would have been Brausch’s second

professional job but, unfortunately, it was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Timothy

Scott Brausch has his entire life ahead of him, is in disbelief that he has already booked 2

professional credits and remains grateful to perform

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