Carpenter Hill has always enjoyed and appreciated people – but he says he hasn’t always felt confident and comfortable interacting with large groups.

But he said that discomfort has disappeared gradually in the past few years, thanks primarily because of the experiences he has had through the Meridian Community College’s community theater programs.

“I have definitely become more social and less anxious,” said the 13-year-old eighth grader at West Lauderdale. “I guess after singing and dancing and doing choreography in front of a lot of people, it is easier to talk to people, too. It gets you prepared to talk to someone without being worried about how it goes.”

Hill spent two years in the Stage 1 program at Meridian Community College, which is for children ages 8 to 12. Then, this past year, he moved up to the Stage 2 program, which serves teenagers ages 13 to 19.

Hill primarily performs as part of the ensemble. He enjoys the choral performances and also likes the idea that the work of the chorus often moves the plot of the play forward, his mom, Leia Hill said.

“He isn’t someone who is always focused on being a lead,” said Carpenter’s mom, who was instrumental in convincing Carpenter to initially give theater a chance. “He really likes being part of a group. He really just wants to be a part of what is happening and to contribute where he can.”

Still, Carpenter Hill was called upon to step out of his comfort zone this past year, when he played young Jimmie Rodgers in Jimmie Rodgers: America’s Blue Yodeler.

“It was a pretty big step up from ensemble,” Carpenter Hill acknowledged. “I had to memorize about four pages of lines between me and the actor playing Jimmie Rodgers’ dad. It was a conversation back and forth but there was definitely preparation that I needed to do.”

Leia Hill said she was struck by how supportive everyone was about Carpenter’s first big part.

“So many people were texting me and complimenting him,” she said. “They were so supportive – it was everything I could have wanted for him. It really did remind me that this group is like a big, supportive family. They all support Carpenter so much. It’s so special.”

Hill has appeared in a number of productions through the Meridian Community College program, including “Pirates of Penzance,” “Beauty and the Beast” and “Matilda.” He devoted much of June to preparing to perform “Annie Get Your Gun.” His younger brother, Brooks, also is involved in the program.

Carpenter Hill said that being mentally prepared is an important part of performing.

“You can’t go in with the idea that you are going to mess up,” he said. “You have to really prepare yourself and put in a lot of effort and practice with it. And then you also know and accept that if you do mess up, you are getting better with time. That’s how this works.”

Carpenter Hill said that he tries hard not to miss practices because he knows that when he does, his absence can affect the performance of the entire ensemble.

“I hate to miss,” he said. “It feels important to always try my best to be there.”

He said that theater has taught him a number of life lessons – especially lessons about what to do if you goof up.

“If you make a mistake on stage, everyone encourages you to just keep going,” he said. “If you mess up or stumble and fall, you just get up and keep going – you act like it is part of the scene and that it was all planned that way from the beginning. That’s an important lesson to learn.”

When Carpenter Hill is not acting or playing in the West Lauderdale band, he enjoys skateboarding and playing video games. He has recently started trying to learn guitar. He also is involved in the youth program at Highland Baptist Church.

The teen said he plans to stick with acting for a while.

“When my mom first asked me about it – kind of out of the blue – it took some persuading,” he said. “But I am really grateful that I tried it. It has helped me with social anxiety and I can talk to everyone now. It has just been a very good thing for me.”