Among Santa Rosa Junior College students, put Joseph Favalora in the category marked “exceptionally accomplished.”

Favalora recently completed a 20-year fantasy career on Broadway, performing worldwide and winning more than 200 dance trophies. He is now attending SRJC at age 42.

Favalora is beginning a new stage in his life, taking classes because he never completed his GED. He dreams of becoming a theater professor at SRJC.

Favalora started dance classes at age 4, when a doctor suggested his parents enroll him in some sort of physical activity because he was undersized. Favalora said, “My mom was like, ‘I think he likes music, we’ll put him in acrobatics.’” He went on to learn tap, ballet and every other type of dance the school had to offer.

Favalora’s dance teacher had him study from every dancer in the greater Boston area. He got everyone’s curriculum so he learned what the Boston schools taught, as well as the Broadway schools. “It was a lot of traveling around but I got all these studies in,” he said.

Favalora started teaching dance at age 15 at a handful of different places. Later on he was in demand in multiple teaching settings, including the Boston Conservatory. He has taught dance in New England, Hawaii and even on Broadway.

Favalora expanded his talents to singing, acting and tumbling. He was chosen to be on Broadway as a teen, but his mom wouldn’t allow it. “I got hired to be in a musical when I was 16, but my mom wouldn’t let me take it because she just felt I was to young and naive, just not experienced enough in the world,” Favalora said.

Favalora had a rough childhood, he said. It was a struggle for his family to pay for their house, so he thought Broadway would be a perfect way to help get them out of their financial troubles. Looking back, Favalora said, “I’m glad I got those four extra years with my parents because they are now passed on and I realized I’ll never get them back.”

Growing up, Favalora heard uninspiring things, like Broadway isn’t a real occupation and that he would never make a living with it. Favalora would say, “I’m going to prove you wrong, it is a real job! I know lots of people who do this for a living.” He finally broke onto Broadway at age 20, and then hopped from show to show with barely any time in between.

Favalora performed in shows including “Beauty and the Beast” with Tony Braxton, “Peter Pan” with Cathy Rigby and “Cats.”

While performing as a salt and pepper shaker in “Beauty in the Beast,” he encountered one of his most embarrassing moments. One of his friends from the show “Cats” came to watch him preform. “I did a split jump, and when I came back I stepped into the costume and hit the ground fast and hard! I got up as quickly as I could and since I wasn’t hurt I just pretended it didn’t happen and thought, ‘The show must go on,’” Favalora said.

While in Montreal performing in “Cats” the show paused briefly while Favalora was given a standing ovation, rare in Canada. His favorite Broadway show is “Once on This Island.”

After his parents died, he took a break from performing and moved to Hawaii. Favalora learned the culture and dance while living there, as well as how to work on his tan. He also was a part of two different luaus. “I love their culture. They embrace the arts, and everyone does the dancing, the singing. The musicians, they make their costumes; they do it all,” Favalora said.

After a couple of years in Hawaii, Favalora got island fever and moved to Los Angeles, where he tried out his talents, but realized he was in a totally different game.

Throughout Favalora’s life he has worked at a handful of different jobs unrelated to acting, including being a fish cutter for his family business, a waiter, a property manager and a flight attendant. He’s tried selling cookware and even helped get rid of Proposition 8 in the Orange County area.

Throughout his travels, he has performed in Germany, Austria, Canada and every state besides Alaska. He recently won the West County Idol Talent Show in Guerneville, along with over 200 trophies for dance.

Favalora performs in the upcoming run of “La Cage Aux Folles” at the Cinnabar theater in Petaluma from Oct. 18 to Nov. 10.