Central New York is waiting for one of its own to hear from Hollywood. Josh Batstone, an 18-year-old aspiring musical theater performer from Fulton, will appear this week on NBC’s singing competition “The Voice.”
Batstone’s vocal teacher of four years, Carol Jacobe, is the former choral director of Baker High School. She’s waiting for her student’s moment on “The Voice’s” blind auditions, in which celebrity judges listen with their high-backed red chairs turned away from the performer. The auditions were taped over the summer of 2014.
Batstone will appear on the March 2, 3 or 9 episode of “The Voice.”
Hip-hop virtuoso Pharrell Williams, pop diva Christina Aguilera and country crooner Blake Shelton have their share of mentees from the auditions that aired last week, Jacobe said, so Batstone has a decent chance of snagging his preferred guru, Adam Levine, of the band Maroon 5.
Jacobe said Batstone first auditioned for “The Voice” three years ago, when he was 15.
“They liked him, but they told him he was too young,” she said. “[This time], they called him.”
Batstone’s lessons with Jacobe have been on hold while he goes through the audition process for “The Voice.” The pair had been working on vocal auditions for college. Batstone is a home-schooled high school senior.
“I have Josh withdrawals,” Jacobe said of missing her student. “He’s so enthusiastic. He really gets into the music. He has a full emotional understanding of the lyrics.”
Batstone caught the musical theater “bug” when he participated in the CNY Christian School of Performing Arts’ productions of “Aladdin” and “Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat.” He has also starred in Baldwinsville Theatre Guild and Syracuse’s Covey Theatre Co. productions.
Jacobe said she hasn’t worked with Batstone on his “Voice” songs, but she’s confident in his abilities.
“My goal in my studio is to teach healthy singing and support any kind of music,” she said. “He knows how to use his voice correctly and he’ll be able to do whatever he needs to do.”
Watch for Josh Batstone’s audition at 8 p.m. Monday, March 2; Tuesday, March 3; or Monday, March 9, on NBC.
