Jeremy Holm has performed on stages all over the world, and he has roles in two of the country’s most popular television series: House of Cards and Mr. Robot.

But while the depth and breadth of the roles played by Holm is certainly impressive, one of his best acting jobs took place three decades ago, far from any stage, when he tagged along with a friend who was registering for classes at Colorado State University.

Holm, who grew up in Conifer, just west of Denver, had considered CSU while looking at colleges but hadn’t quite gone through the process of applying for admission. Still, he brought his application that day and walked into Moby Arena to see how the registration process worked.

“I just started walking up to tables and asking for cards for some classes,” he said, chuckling at the memory. “I explained that I hadn’t received my acceptance letter but I showed them my completed registration form. Next thing you know, I had a full load of classes.”

Quite an act

By the time the day was over, Holm not only was ready for the fall semester, he had secured a spot in a residence hall for this freshman year – all without applying, let alone getting accepted.

“My acceptance letter showed up three weeks into classes,” he said with a laugh. He earned his bachelor’s degree in performing arts in 1993.

Holm’s performance was just a hint of what was to come at CSU and throughout a successful 30-year professional career. Over the course of his undergraduate journey at CSU he either acted in or worked on the technical side of productions in every semester, starting with the musical Guys and Dolls, before moving into community theater with OpenStage Theater and Company in Fort Collins.

A rising star

Morris Burns, who retired in 2004 after a 34-year career teaching theater at CSU, vividly remembers Holm.

“He called about a week before classes started his freshman year hoping to meet with a professor – that’s how passionate he was about getting started in the theater program,” Burns said. “That passion never left him. He got a part (Liverlips Louie) in Guys and Dolls that first semester, and I’ll bet I worked with him on 10 or 12 productions after that. He was always getting cast because he not only had the passion for acting, he had natural ability. And he really, really wanted to be successful.

“It was a rewarding time for me, as a teacher, to work with someone who is so richly gifted and also has the energy and spirit to develop those gifts.”