Lexington native dreamed of performing in NYC while at OCHS
Moving to New York City from her hometown of Lexington was nothing short of a culture shock for actress Jimmica Collins, but after graduating from Oglethorpe County High School in 2009, she had her heart set on it.
“I had only grown up with certain types of people,” Collins said. “I hadn’t experienced a lot of different cultures before.”
Collins’ unwavering dedication to getting into New York University’s Tisch School of the Arts started in high school when she enrolled in the Upward Bound Program at the University of Georgia for aspiring first-generation college students.
The group’s first summer trip happened to be to New York City to tour colleges, including NYU.
“They took us to see ‘Rent’ on Broadway, and that was when I remember I turned to my UGA mentor, and I was like, ‘I want to do that. How do I do that?’” Collins said.
Collins’ UGA mentor, in addition to friends and teachers from home, encouraged her to apply to NYU Tisch. Collins said one of her biggest supporters was Bly Hartley, who directed many plays she was in at her local theater, Arts!Oglethorpe.
“I didn’t really start to think that this is what I wanted to do until I joined Arts!Oglethorpe and started doing community theater shows,” Collins said. “Bly is such a great director.”
Through her involvement in Arts!Oglethorpe, Collins built her acting experience. She began acting in plays there in middle school and returned to perform there through her high school and college years.
Even though she now lives in Atlanta, Collins frequently returns to Arts!Oglethorpe to see ongoing performances and visit Hartley.
“She’s always been wonderful,” Hartley said. “She’s one of those people that you knew early on, she was gonna go somewhere.”
Hartley and her husband Kevin even traveled to New York to see the opening night of “Aanika’s Elephants,” the Broadway show in which she is starring.
In the play, which will run to Sunday, April 7, Collins plays the lead role, an orphan girl who builds a friendship with a baby elephant.
Playwright Annie Evans said the play’s purpose is to show children that anyone can be family.
“Family is what you make it,” Collins said. “That truly is what I believe the best theme of the story is.”
According to reviews, the simultaneously impactful and playful nature of the production has made it an instant success. Before opening night, the play ran two sold-out performances for the children of the New York City school systems.
“There were 485 kids in every show, and it felt like a concert,” Collins said.
For Collins, seeing the joy from audience members is the most gratifying part of her job. In addition to studying theater, she also minored in child and adolescent mental health studies.
She considered a teaching career, but ultimately felt called to perform.
“I love this so much. I can’t see myself not performing for kids ever,” Collins said. “All of my time has been spent mostly on children’s theater and children’s television, so I don’t think I will ever stop.”
Collins’ career in children’s entertainment continues off the Broadway stage.
She also plays Grandma Nell in “Sesame Street.” After completing the Sesame Workshop Mentee Program in 2021 and auditioning for the role, she was cast for Season 53.
Grandma Nell is the grandmother of characters Gabrielle and Tamir, who were introduced to the show in 2020.
The introduction of new characters on “Sesame Street” aims to diversify the cast and explain topics of race, ethnicity and culture to children.
“I think that’s different because usually, with traditional ‘Sesame Street,’ all the characters are orange, red and yellow,” Collins said. “And now, these colors are beige and brown, and different skin tones.”
The casting directors aim to provide real representation when selecting the cast. Collins’ character Grandma Nell is also from Georgia, giving Collins the opportunity to showcase her Oglethorpe County roots.
“I’m using my real Oglethorpe County accent for Grandma Nell,” Collins said.