Deerfield First Grader Appears on 'Today Show'

Story updated Jan. 8 to include link to video of the award judging.

For the last 14 months, Deerfield first grader Zachary Maitlin has been singing and dancing in the Tony-award winning Musical Billy Elliot.

And this morning, as the show prepares to wind up its Broadway run, Maitlin made an appearance on The Today Show as the winner of the Billy Elliot Christmas Door Decorating Contest, which featured 14 doors in the competition.

Today Show hosts Kathy Lee Gifford and Hoda Kotb judged the show’s door contest and featured Zachary on the show for a cameo appearance during their judging.

Zachary’s winning door, "Today in the Manger," featured himself as an Angel, hanging on the door itself, over a manager scene that included the faces of the Today Show crew. It was created by the men's ensemble. The second place winner was artist John Funk, whose door “Gaurdian Angels” was designed with 266 Band-aid wrappers, said Zachary's dad, Larry.

Zachary’s run in the shared role as “small boy” in the cast of Billy Elliot will end on Sunday with the show’s final performance on Broadway.

For Zachary, who shared the role with Alex Dreier of Glen Ridge, the show was more than just bright lights and performance. While on the set, he and Dreir conducted a fundraiser in which they raised $181 for Broadway Cares/Equity  Fights AIDS commissioning drawings for the cast, crew and management of the show.

Zach is the little brother of , also a singer, dancer and actress, whose most recent starring role in the Millburn Middle School musical production received rave reviews.

To see video of the Zach on the door, as well as the rest of the judging, click here.