Dressed as a little munchkin and performing on stage with his siblings was one of Caleb Woodley’s best memories in his theater career.

It was his fifth grade year, and the production was “The Wizard of Oz.” His sister was Dorothy, one of his brothers was the scarecrow and the other was the haunted tree.

“It was really exciting for me, because I got to be as cool as my older siblings,” said Woodley, a senior in performing arts.

“I’m the youngest kid, and it was just like ‘Awe, I get to be with the big kids.’”

Since Woodley was a child, he has been interested in theater and performed in many productions.

He came from a household where singing, dancing and doing goofy things were common and shared between him and his family.

His first taste of the performing arts came in third grade when he narrated, “The Boy Who Cried Wolf.” Today, his resume includes numerous theater productions as well as a successful theater competition.

Last January, Woodley competed in the Kennedy Center American College Theatre Festival for his performance as Felix Ungar in “The Odd Couple.”

In order to enter the event, a candidate must be nominated by a scout. Jane Cox, director of “The Odd Couple” and professor of music, said that one of the reasons Woodley got nominated was likely based on that performance.

“It was a character that wasn’t very close to his own personality,” Cox said. “I think he has a great sense of comic timing and I think he did well in capturing the character he was playing. He just was very funny in the role.”

The section of the competition Woodley participated in was called The Irene Ryan Acting Scholarship, which included 280 competitors.

For picking a partner, which is a requirement after being nominated, Woodley chose Madison Welterlen, junior in music.

Together, the pair made it to the top 16 competitors.

The pieces it choose to perform at the event included a scene from Shakespeare’s “Henry VI,” “The Bald Soprano,” by Eugene Ionesco and a monologue called “Picking Scabs.”

Woodley said the reason the two decided on these parts was because of the contrasting styles between them.

Asside from getting nominated and making it to the top 16, Woodley said another aspect that was exciting was getting to perform in front of 1,400 people on a stage that was comparable to the one in Stephens Auditorium.

“It was the first time I have ever performed in front of that many people,” Woodley said.

“It was daunting but exciting because it was just like, that’s what I want to do is perform in front as many people as possible,” he said. “That’s what you work for. That’s the goal.”

Woodley’s next upcoming role is in the ISU Theatre production of “The Importance of Being Earnest,” which opens at Fisher Theater this weekend.

Woodley is performing the character of Jack Worthing, a man who wants to marry a woman named Gwendolen but can’t without her mother’s approval.

Woodley said this role is different than the rest he’s played because of the British dialect that he’s never had to do.

“The Importance of Being Earnest”

When: 7:30 p.m. Friday and Saturday; 2 p.m. Sunday

Where: Fisher Theater

Cost: $8 for students, $15 for adults, $13 for seniors

In this Oscar Wilde comedy, Algernon is visited by his friend Ernest Worthing, who confesses in the country, he goes by the name of John (or Jack).

Algernon reveals he pretends to have an invalid friend named Bunbury in the country. Algernon’s cousin Gwendolen arrives and Jack proposes as he intended to do, but she seems to love him only for his professed name Ernest.

At Jack’s country house, Algernon arrives announcing himself as Ernest Worthing and Cecily loves “Ernest” at least in part for his name. The two must decide if to expose their true identity, which only leads to more antics.