What is it like to win the lottery? Ask UNCG doctoral candidate Joey Lavarias, who did just that, earning a spot on the most famous televised game show in the US. Chosen from tens of thousands of applicants after passing a series of tests, live auditions (one with a ballpoint pen to test your clicking response rate), and perhaps the hardest test of all – the pandemic.
“I waited for two years after passing the test and making it to the final approval stage to become a contestant,” said Lavarias, a bassoonist in the School of Music in the College of Visual and Performing Arts. “Out of the blue, I received a phone call from the show’s producer in January. Next thing I knew, I was asking my music professors for permission to miss classes because I have to fly to California to tape the show. My UNCG family has been so supportive. It’s been a dream come true.”
“It was obvious from when I met him as an applicant for our Doctor of Musical Arts (DMA) degree that Joey was bright as well as talented,” said Professor of Bassoon Dr. Michael Burns. “He was awarded a prestigious Graduate Fellowship from UNCG based upon his grades and academic achievements. I also knew of his aspirations to one day appear on Jeopardy! After I learned that he would be missing classes to go and compete on Jeopardy! we held a virtual Double Reed Day (oboes and bassoons) at UNCG and one event was to have online quizzes. Who better to become our “quiz master” for these games than Joey? I was dying to tell our participants that the quiz master would be appearing on Jeopardy! but it was not allowed to be announced at that time. I and the entire bassoon studio are proud of Joey and excited to watch him on the show to cheer him on. As an armchair fan of Jeopardy! myself, I appreciate the level of knowledge displayed by the contestants and am very impressed that Joey now gets to join their ranks. Way to go, Joey!”
Hard work and persistence have paid off for Lavarias, who earned his undergraduate and graduate degrees from the prestigious Juilliard School in New York City. Originally from Florida, Lavarias plans to teach music after graduation next year. He would love to teach at a school like UNCG.
You can watch him compete on Wednesday, March 30 at 7:30 p.m. EST on CBS.
