Wheeling Park High School graduate Megan Chacalos is literally living the dream.
The Patriot Class of 2015 alum is now a New York City-based performer and producer, and she is finding great success. She is a Broadway producer during the day working on a musical called “Wild about You.” Chacalos was recently cast as the host of the social media talk show “Broadway Interludes” on Art Lab Productions’ YouTube channel. The show premiers every Monday with interviews and performances from Broadway’s greatest talents. Chacalos even got the opportunity to attend the 2023 Tony Awards and walk the pink carpet.
“It was a dream,” she said. “It really felt like a movie moment. It was magical, and it gave me so much pride.”
“My dream has always been to perform on Broadway or in film,” she added. “If I’m performing, I’m going to be happy. It just brings me so much joy, and I knew that from a young age.”
Chacalos attended Warwood School before attending Wheeling Park. During her time at Park, she became a pillar within the performing arts departments. She was a member of the Young Patriots Choir, the school orchestra, and she performed in every mainstage production during her time such as “Anything Goes,” “Beauty and the Beast” and “Footloose.” Chacalos was a member of the WPHS Speech and Debate Team, and she won three first-place state titles in “Sales,” “Dramatic Duo” and “Humorous Interpretation.”
She has great affection for Wheeling Park High School. Chacalos said her high school education was demanding and rigorous, but what she learned at Park prepared her for her life and career in New York City.
“I’m a proud alum, and I love Park,” she said. “I always loved being in the speech and theater departments, and it really set me up for success. It was very competitive and exhausting, and so my classmates and I were prepared for that by the time we got to college. I felt like I was ahead of the game. It builds a drive or motivation. A lot of us from the theater (department) are doing really well.”
Chacalos went on to West Virginia University where she received a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Acting in 2019. She starred in productions such as “She Kills Monsters,” “Meteor Shower” and “New Anatomies.” Her favorite mainstage credit was the silent maid in Chekhov’s “Three Sisters,” which she described as a highlight of her young career.
Chacalos is the daughter of Laurel Chacalos and Wheeling Park High School teacher John Chacalos. She said her parents were always supportive of her career ambitions. Her uncle is retired Wheeling Park teacher Pete Chacalos who is a current member of the Ohio County Board of Education.
Chacalos cites Patriot teachers Bill Cornforth, Ben Podolski and Kayla Nelson as some of her favorites. And although she is flourishing in her performance career in New York City, she still looks forward to returning to Wheeling Park High School.
“I think I may do some workshops with the Patriot theater department and speech and debate when I’m home,” Chacalos said. “It would be fun, and I’d love to do it.”
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