As the final bell of the school day rings, most students start making their way home, but Claire Miller goes straight to the auditorium to rehearse whatever show she is in at the moment. No matter what show it is, everyone is assured that she will be a star.
Ever since her fifth-grade year, Miller has been involved with her school’s theatre program, starting with Frozen Jr. She said that what made her want to join theatre was her mother’s own involvement in the arts, and she already had some voice training under her belt. She started taking voice lessons in fourth grade because she “thought it would be fun.” What kept her involved was the friendships she made with her castmates and all the fun she had with them.
Though she was in the ensemble for her first three shows, Miller got her breakout role in sixth grade when she was cast as Ogre Fiona in Shrek the Musical Jr. It was the first role she played where she had lines to say and solos to sing. She mentioned how excited she was when she opened the cast list for that show and saw she had gotten her first big part. Other roles she played throughout middle school were Mrs. Potts in Beauty and the Beast Jr., Miss Honey in Matilda Jr., Ariel in The Little Mermaid Jr., and Grace in Annie Jr. Being Ariel in The Little Mermaid helped strengthen her acting because she did not talk in most of the show and had to speak through facial expressions and body language.
So far in her high school theatre career, Miller has played Babe in The Cher Show, Cady in Mean Girls the Musical, Clarice in Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer Jr., and, most recently, Anna in Frozen. The Cher Show was a challenging experience for her because it was her first show in high school, and there were many things she had to do for the role of Babe. She had many quick changes throughout the show and had to keep track of all the costumes while also trying to learn Cher’s voice and movements. Trying to get the voice right was the most difficult part. However, she faced those challenges with grace and stayed up late almost every night trying to get everything about Cher right. By the time the show arrived, she was fully prepared and put her all into the role.
Miller expressed how much she loved being a part of Mean Girls: The Musical because of the bond she had with the cast throughout the show. When asked which character she related to the most out of all the characters she has played, she answered Cady because she is “awkward like her.” She mentioned how theatre has helped her build relationships with her friends who are also involved with it. She said, “We’re very involved with each other throughout the year, constantly. We spend time with each other, go places, and that builds them up a lot.”
Miller is also involved in the choir and started in the middle of seventh grade. Since then, she has participated in the Indiana State School Music Association (ISSMA) and received a perfect score her first year for singing “Tale as Old as Time” from Beauty and the Beast. After that, she went to the state and received a distinction when she was in eighth grade.
Miller also keeps herself busy by playing golf for Madison’s girls’ golf team. She said she enjoys the sport a lot and that it is her “favourite thing.” She did golf camps throughout elementary school, but began playing more seriously when she was in fifth grade and is now on varsity as a sophomore. Her personal best is a 42 on nine holes and a 93 on 18 holes.
Throughout everything, Miller’s family has supported her. They have paid for her voice lessons, taken her to different camps, seen all of her shows, volunteered backstage, and helped her with ISSMA.
With everything she has accomplished, Miller has been described as very humble by her friends. Reagan Wynn, a close friend of Miller’s, said, “You’ll never hear her brag about it. She does every part, and she tries hard. You’ll never hear her complain.” She added, “She’s very easy to work with and enjoyable to be around. Even if something doesn’t go her way, she handles it in a mature way.”
Another close friend of hers, Zuzu Bailey, said, “She handles herself with so much grace and maturity. You don’t typically see that from someone in theatre our age, and it’s nice to be around.”
After recently wrapping up her role as Anna in Frozen, Miller is turning her attention back to another stage, the golf course. If you are looking for her next performance, you may just find it on the fairways next fall.
