By Anna Grace Moore
Photos by Matthew Murphy & Contributed
With every note sung, actress Nicole Lamb possesses the innate ability to captivate the attention of those eagerly watching as she vividly performs the story of those whose voices deserve to be told, and she believes every character has a story to tell.
A native of Vestavia Hills, Nicole grew up dancing at the Jackie O’Neal School of Dance from the time she was just 3 years old. Jackie, Tammy Towns and Nealy Towns Alonso, she says, helped her develop a passion for the arts.
Then at age 9, Nicole auditioned for her first-ever theatre production with Red Mountain Theatre Company. Keith Cromwell, who serves as RMTC’s Director of Institutional Advancement, was holding auditions for the musical, “Annie.”
She went on to book the role of Molly, completely surprising her family due to her lack of experience.
“I loved it so, so much, and I still do,” Nicole says. “I’m much older than that now, but I still have that same passion and love for it. When things do get hard because life is hard, touring is hard, being an adult is hard–I always go back to that feeling of I truly know that this is what I was meant to do. I have that same childlike love for it that I did when I was 9 years old.”
With an insatiable itch to create, Nicole continued singing, dancing and acting, developing her mantra as a “triple threat.” She joined the girl’s choir at Pizitz Middle School and the Rebelettes’ dance team at Vestavia Hills High School.
She also booked lead roles in numerous RMTC productions such as Olive Ostrovsky in “The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee” and Jo March in “Little Women.”
“He definitely trained me and brought in incredible guest artists from New York and all over,” Nicole says of Keith. “That really was such a foundation to get to work with professionals at such a young age. It helped my work ethic that I have now.”
In her earlier roles, Nicole says she was prioritized more for her dancing abilities. She later began working with The Amy Murphy Studio in Mountain Brook and found not only one of the best teachers of her life, but also a wonderful friend in Amy.
“She is very much in my corner and is always rooting for me,” Nicole says, smiling.
During her senior year when she played Jo, Nicole says singing “Astonishing” on stage for the first time made her realize she wanted to pursue acting full time. She even missed her senior prom just so she could play the role.
“That show was such a dream,” Nicole says, later adding, “the girls who played my sisters the night of my prom brought a tiara backstage for me to have a prom moment and be prom queen, which I thought was really sweet.”
After graduating in 2013, Nicole attended Elon University, studying musical theater; yet, after a year, she realized this was not the path for her. Instead, she packed her bags and ventured to the Big Apple, eager to pay her dues as an aspiring actress.
She spent several years in New York booking small roles before the pandemic brought the arts to a temporary halt. She found herself back in Birmingham and got connected with Meg Deusner of Acting Out Academy in Vestavia Hills.
Nicole says Meg helped her film every audition tape, cheering her on between each take. Meg also helped her transition from musical theater to TV and film, enabling her to book several commercials and even small roles in shows such as “Legacies” and “The First Lady.”
“One of my best, best, best memories is I had one line–actually, it was a paragraph–in a showtime show with Viola Davis that got completely cut from the show,” Nicole says, chuckling. “So, I look like an extra in it, but I did have lines. But that was the best day of my entire life because I got to watch Viola Davis work.”
Nicole says as talented as Viola is, she is far more gracious and thankful for those around her. This project taught her the importance of humility–something she strives to have even playing lead roles on stage.
Not long after did Nicole’s breakout role come calling–lead Katherine Howard in “SIX” on the Norwegian Bliss. The 80-minute-long musical has only six roles, who happen to portray the six wives of King Henry VIII.
Katherine, the fifth wife and arguably the one with the most tragic life, has a seven-and-a-half-minute-long solo, detailing how she was sexually exploited by men throughout her lifetime. Nicole says she enjoyed bringing justice to Katherine’s memory on stage.
“What I like about ‘SIX’ is each of the queens get to speak for themselves; whereas, in history, we’ve kind of been taught these ideas about them,” she says.
Then, Nicole accomplished another childhood dream: touring with “Aladdin.” In the show, Nicole was a swing and covered all of the female ensemble tracks as well as Princess Jasmine.
She says this production was both the largest and most difficult of her career thus far; yet, it was nonetheless rewarding.
“That was a huge learning curve for me because you have to rewire your brain of how you learn choreography and staging and blocking,” she says.
The American Theatre Guild hosted “Aladdin,” whose touring company performed at the BJCC Concert Hall in Birmingham from Jan. 24-28, 2024, and for the first time ever, Nicole made her debut as Jasmine. Performing live, she says she had to fight back tears as she could not believe this was real life.
She had performed at the BJCC for dance competitions and had also attended many musicals, plays and concerts there in her youth.
“I will never forget that feeling of being in the air, essentially looking over at everybody and singing ‘A Whole New World’ in Birmingham,” Nicole says. “That was my moment for sure.”
Since touring with “Aladdin,” Nicole has booked the role of Margaret and is an understudy for Anne Hathaway in “& Juliet.” She is excited as this is one of the first times she is playing an adult woman, having played mostly children or teenagers in her youth.
“I’m challenging myself in 2025 to be open to new opportunities,” Nicole says, later adding, “I’m challenging myself to be really present and grateful for the job and the amazing show that I’m in right now.”
To all of her friends and family back home, Nicole says, “Thank you.” Truly, it takes a village to raise a child, and now because of her support system, she is living her dream, performing live nearly every night.
“I literally could not have done any of this without my parents and without my sisters,” she says. “They still cheer me on and are rooting for me.”
To keep tabs on Nicole Lamb’s career, follow her on Instagram @coleylamb.
Stage Credits
Below are some of Nicole Lamb’s favorite roles she’s played in Birmingham and beyond:
Annie | Molly
Red Mountain Theatre Company
Sweet Charity | Rosie, Lead Frug Dancer, Understudy/Helene
Red Mountain Theatre Company
The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee | Olive Ostrovsky
Red Mountain Theatre Company
Legally Blonde | Understudy/Serena/Margot, Dance Captain
Red Mountain Theatre Company
Little Women | Jo March
Red Mountain Theatre Company
42nd Street | Peggy Sawyer
Red Mountain Theatre Company
Les Misérables | Éponine Thénardier
Red Mountain Theatre Company
Junie B.’s Essential Survival Guide to School | Junie B. Jones
U.S. Tour
The Berenstain Bears Live! In Family Matters The Musical | Sister Bear
Miller Symphony Hall
Smokey Joe’s Cafe | DeLee Lively
Red Mountain Theatre Company
SIX | Katherine Howard
Norwegian Bliss
Aladdin | Swing, Understudy/Jasmine
North American Tour
& Juliet | Margaret, Understudy/Anne
North American Tour
Broadway in Birmingham
As the largest, not-for-profit Broadway Presenter in the United States, The American Theatre Guild supports Broadway shows in Birmingham and 13 other markets across the nation. Its mission is to “inspire creativity and empower the members of [local] communities.” To learn more or purchase season tickets to Broadway productions at the BJCC, visit americantheatreguild.com/birmingham.
