Singer from Utah chasing dreams on Broadway

Dallyn Vail Bayles is living the stereotypical life of the aspiring thespian. He's now in New York — well, he actually lives in New Providence, N.J., which is a train-commute away — where he holds down 2 1/2 jobs, one as an administrative assistant at a legal firm, one as an usher at the New American theater and the other as an intern at a talent agency.

He auditions — a lot.

He gets callbacks — a lot.

He hasn't got his "big break" yet — but he knows it could be out there.

"It's crazy. It's fantastic. I love it," he says. "I'm paying my dues."

He knows it was a risk, moving his wife and three children to the Big Apple. It's not only about as far from home as a boy from Green River can get, but he's also one of hundreds, even thousands, of talented young men with the same dream.

But it was also something that he knows in his soul that he had to do. If you don't do everything you can to reach your dreams, he says, they will stay only dreams.

Bayles talked about that on a recent visit to Salt Lake City, where he performed as part of the Days of '47 concert and gave a performance in Centerville. He is returning again for a solo concert Friday night in Provo. That concert will feature songs from his "Prayer" CD, released locally a year ago, which includes songs from Broadway productions such as "Les Miserables" and "Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat," as well as other inspirational and supplicatory numbers.

The CD received a Listener's Choice Award for New Artist of the Year at the recent LDS Booksellers convention held in Salt Lake City.

It's fun and exciting to be back, he said. He's always been appreciative of his many supportive fans, and he loves the songs on the CD. "They are woven with thoughts of the power of prayer. I think they are the perfect songs for me; I love Broadway, and I love inspirational Christian music. These songs bridge the gap."

Both those elements have played a role in his career to date.

Bayles fell in love with theater when he was in the ninth grade, and his teacher, Mrs. Jenkins, took the class to see a production of "Les Miserables."

"When I saw that, I was blown away. I wanted to be able to do what those people had done. I wanted to be able to give to other people the same experience they had given me. From that point on, I learned whatever I could about it. That goal, that desire never left my mind."

He did have some second thoughts, however. "How stable of a career can it be? So, I decided I should have a fallback job. I was going to be a doctor." In fact, he jokes, "That's how I tricked my wife into marrying me. I was a pre-med student."

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