It wasn't until after his performance that Derek Outson realized he had just sung, danced and acted on a Broadway stage.

That's when he saw his mother, Sue, who was waiting for him with flowers — a common theater tradition.

"It all came crashing down," the Lincoln East High School sophomore said. "I remember it was such a cool feeling."

Outson and Kelsey Schmitt, a Crete Middle School eighth-grader, were among 52 students selected from across the country to participate in "Bravo on With the Show."

The duo, along with their families, traveled two weeks ago to New York City, where they underwent three days of intense theatrical training with professional Broadway actors, choreographers and directors.

Their schooling focused on different facets of the theater, including stage combat.

"It was fun to learn to beat people up without hurting them," Schmitt said.

Their studies helped prepare them for a production specially scripted for "Bravo on With the Show." They performed the work in front of a live audience on a Broadway stage — in this case at the Imperial Theatre, the current home to "Dirty Rotten Scoundrels."

 Of course, it wasn't all work. The trip also included sightseeing, a highlight for Schmitt, who made her first trip to the Big Apple.

"I liked all the busyness and excitement of the big city," she said.

"Bravo on With the Show" is a national competition created by the cable network Bravo that seeks to raise awareness of the positive impact of theater participation on young people.

Time Warner Cable collaborated with Bravo in sending 52 students ages 10 to 17 to New York City for the once-in-a-lifetime experience.

To qualify, each student answered entry form questions, penned an essay of 500 words or less and submitted a letter of recommendation from a teacher. Outson and Schmitt were chosen based on the quality of their responses, the content of their essays and the strength of their teachers' letters.

In addition to the trip, Time Warner Cable and Bravo donated $1,000 to Lincoln East and Crete Middle School to fund the schools' arts programs.

Outson, who has appeared in several Lincoln Community Playhouse productions, said the experience was the "definition of life-changing."

"I learned a lot more about group dynamics," he said. "I learned about being in an ensemble."

Reach Jeff Korbelik at 473-7213 or jkorbelik@journalstar.com.