This summer, I’m going to tell you about some very talented people who have been educated in Columbus, but have moved away to pursue their dreams.

I’m going to start with Valton Jackson.

I’ve been friends with his mother, Tonda, since they moved to Columbus. Tonda came to Columbus as the assistant general manager of the Columbus Cottonmouths.

Valton, who is now 25, sang with the Columbus Boy Choir for years. Then he entered Columbus High School and discovered drama. His very first show was “Once on This Island.” He was very good.

When he graduated from high school, he went to Berea College in Kentucky. Tonda would tell me about the shows he was doing, and the next thing I knew, he had graduated.

I have to admit that Tonda is very protective of her sons, and when he got a job at Six Flags America near Washington, D.C., she called me in a panic, wondering if she should let him go.

I don’t have children, but you’ve got to let your children go at some point, right? Tonda realized she had to let her son follow his dreams.

Valton called me Friday and said he’s working at the Wagon Wheel Theatre in Warsaw, Ind., doing summer repertory.

“I’m doing four shows for the summer season,” he said. “I’m playing the leopard in Disney’s ‘Tarzan.’ It’s very athletic.”

After that show closes, he’ll be in “Hairspray,” where he’s in the ensemble.

“Dennis Scott Michaels is the director. I just finished working with him on ‘A Chorus Line.’ in the Armory in Janesville, Wisc. He is a great choreographer, and it’s great working with him again.”

Valton will be in the ensemble for the final two shows, “State Fair” and “Big River.”

He said Warsaw is a very small town, but it’s “a very beautiful and wealthy area.” He laughed when he said he actually went out in a boat the other day.

“This area is full of lakes. It’s a really pretty place and we get a lot of support from the community.”

He goes back to New York City on Aug. 1, then it’s off to the Arizona Broadway Theatre in Peoria, Ariz., where he’ll play Richie for the third time in “A Chorus Line.”

In the meantime, that elusive show is just beyond his reach. Valton said he’s had 18 auditions for a new show called “Bring it On,” which premiered to great houses and reviews in Atlanta’s Alliance Theatre last season. A national tour begins in January, and he hopes to be on the bus. It will tour around the country for a year and then head for Broadway.

Wouldn’t that be great?

“They brought me in to sing and read for several roles,” he said. “It’s really flattering that they know who I am. I’m so happy to be considered.”

Right now, he’s looking for representation. Valton’s done this all on his own. Why pay someone to book shows when he’s doing so well?

Because he said it won’t be as tiring for him to be chasing down all these auditions all by himself. “I’ve been very, very blessed without representation, but it will be easier with it,” he said.

I saw Valton at his younger brother’s graduation. Devin’s dream is to play pro ball, and he signed with Darton College in Albany.

“It was a time for celebration,” he told me. “It was a very happy, exciting time for my family.”