UW Freshman, Disney Star

Buescher’s character is a high school student who befriends a pop music trio. Disney/Lara Solanki

UW–Madison’s freshman class can count a rising Hollywood star among its ranks. You might catch Nathaniel Buescher x’29 climbing up Bascom Hill to get to his biology classes — or appearing on your screen in Disney’s musical comedy series Electric Bloom.

In the show, which premiered last July, Buescher plays Lucas Jasper, a high school student who befriends a pop music trio that becomes the biggest band in the world.

“He’s the class crush, whether he knows it or not,” Buescher says. “[The bandmates] Posey, Jade, and Tulip definitely notice when he walks by. He’s a mix of poetic and clueless, someone who can trip over his own backpack two seconds after saying something unexpectedly wise.”

Buescher, who grew up in Chicago, previously starred in the anthology series Circuit Breakers and appeared in several other TV shows. He decided to attend the UW because of its balance of competitive academics and social opportunities.

“I wanted a school that was competitive to get into and would actually push me once I got there,” he says. “The UW had that. But I also wanted the full college setup: Big Ten sports, a solid social scene. And the town mattered. Madison has a great vibe. It’s smart, social, and easy to get around. It felt like a place I could actually live, not just go to school.”

Filming for Electric Bloom wrapped up last summer, so Buescher has been able to focus on school during his freshman year (with the occasional audition sprinkled in). He plans to major in biology, with an eye toward medical school and dermatology.

On the Electric Bloom set, Buescher represented his school spirit with a flag in his dressing room and met fellow Badger Rachel Lewis ’03, one of the show’s creators.

At the UW, his classmates occasionally recognize him from their screens.

“One time I was walking across campus,” he says, “and someone pointed and said, ‘Wait, are you the guy from that electric show? Bloom something?’ I said yeah, and they fist-bumped me and kept moving. No selfie. No follow-up. Just a drive-by moment. It was kind of perfect.”

Published in the Spring 2026 issue