When he received the email congratulating him on his success, Mr Crichton recalls crying with his parents out of sheer joy and excitement.
Before joining the programme at the end of 2013, the 18-year-old loved music and grew up immersed in gospel music, never imagined getting into opera, and now could not imagine doing anything else.
The singing actor has spent most of his life on national stages of many sorts such as barbershop, kapa haka and Pacifica Beats band nationals and has studied musical theatre and a capella at The National Youth Drama School.
"Every time I think of where I am today, I remember what I was like on that audition day signing pop songs. Nothing wrong with pop songs, but opera is just not at all what I ever thought I would be doing at this stage in my life.
"I love opera, it is a part of my life now and I don't know what I would do today if I wasn't rehearsing, singing, and performing around Hawke's Bay and New Zealand doing opera."
The thought of being surrounded by students that have the same passion and being in the centre of Wellington, with different culture groups makes him "really excited".
He believes Project Prima Volta (PPV) helped him through his formative years and nurtured the idea that he could one day take to the stages around the world.
"They have helped me in ways that I can't even describe. I owe it all to PPV and I hope to share what I have learnt all around the world.
He is sharing the role of Goro in Madame Butterfly with fellow 18-year-old, Emmanuel Fonoti-Fuimaono.
"You've got all this international knowledge coming into Hastings and we've been introduced to the whole world just by being in this one opera."
Project Prima Volta is a singing-based music programme that provides 30 Hawke's Bay teenagers the opportunity to find their own voice, through song, and in life.
Organiser Anna Pierard said this was the first year that so many students had shown interest in taking their singing to tertiary level.
"Several of the students have been with PPV for more than two years, so over that time, have developed the skills to be able to seriously consider a career as a performer.
"It's great to think that more young people are beginning to recognise that their passion can also be their career.
"University or any kind of tertiary study is really important for young students because it helps move them into a world of elective study. There they can come into contact with people that share their interests and they can be inspired by a context they don't have access to in their own communities.
"I can imagine that for many of these students, it will be a thrill for them to concentrate solely on their singing and music study, and not need to split focus or meet requirements of other unrelated subjects."
Pierard says many of these teenagers experience severe hardship and other obstacles to success, so proceeds from the Growing Opera Stars evening will be used by the Prima Volta Charitable Trust to help support these students and ensure the continued running of the programme.
