Trying to find a first job is stressful and often very discouraging, especially when goals are set high and options are limited.

Recent graduate of the American Musical and Dramatic Academy, Joseph Frederick can relate to this.

Frederick, who is currently touring with the musical cast of “Carousel,” almost gave up his hope of getting a role.

“I had basically given up on Trioka [the company producing Carousel],” Frederick said. “It had been a couple of weeks since my audition, and I hadn’t heard anything from them.

“I remember it like it was yesterday,” he continued. “I was waiting by the phone — although, they told us to never do that in school.”

“No, really I was at the grocery store looking for fat-free ranch dressing for my girlfriend, and I couldn’t find any; all I could find was cucumber,” he added. “I called her to ask if cucumber was OK, and she told me Troika called and wanted me for a second call. I was so excited I hung up and ran around the store screaming. I had to call back later and ask about the salad dressing. Cucumber was OK.”

Frederick, playing the role of Jigger, is currently on a nine-month tour with the cast of “Carousel,” a musical based on a Rodgers and Hammerstein fable of love and redemption.

“Carousel” is staged in a small town on the New England Coast in 1873. The musical begins at an amusement park where barker Billy Bigelow meets Julie Jordan.

Shortly after meeting, they fall in love and marry. However, happiness is short-lived when Billy loses his job and has no way to support his wife and unborn child.

Enter Jigger, “the scrooge of the sea.”

“Jigger, a discontented seaman on a whale ship, needs money and needs Billy’s help and tries to convince him of murdering someone and stealing the money,” Frederick said.

“As Billy’s situation becomes desperate, he follows Jigger’s plan. But their plans fall through, and Billy accidentally kills himself.”

The musical follows the internal dilemmas Billy must face when he is not allowed into heaven and is forced to redeem himself. His biggest challenge is restoring faith within his daughter and reaffirming his love for Julie.

“The biggest challenge of this, or any musical of this size, is to not come off too cartoony,” Frederick said. “My part has several funny bits, and sometimes it is easy to lose focus when I try too hard to please the audience. When the audience is really fun, it’s hard to stay focused.

“You also have to be able to relate to the character,” he continued. “I’ve never plotted to kill anyone before, so that has been a bit difficult too.”

Carousel also features Rodgers and Hammerstein’s best-loved works including “If I Loved You,” “What’s the Use of Wond’rin'” and “You’ll Never Walk Alone.”

The cast of this Tony Award winning musical will be performing at Stephens Auditorium Sunday at 7:30 p.m.

Tickets are $10, $14 and $17 for students and $20, $28 and $34 general admission and are available through the Iowa State Center Ticket Office and all TicketMaster locations.