Kelly Ripa’s son Joaquin is counting down the days to graduation

Kelly Ripa and Mark Consuelos became an empty nester officially in 2021 with the departure of the youngest in their brood, Joaquin, for college.

The youngest of their three kids left for the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor in the fall of 2021, the first of the family to study outside New York City. Both their other kids, Michael and Lola, were students at New York University.

However, his time away from home will soon come to an end, with his graduation from university this summer. While it’s unclear whether he’ll move out again and pursue other opportunities outside of New York, he’s making the best of one last semester.

Joaquin took to his Instagram Stories to share a video of some of his friends from the varsity team performing and artistically filming their stunts, showing off what he and his batchmates have gotten up to in recent days.

The youngest of the Ripa-Consuelos clan is a member of the school’s wrestling team, the Wolverines, while completing his performing arts degree. He is enrolled in the School of Music, Theatre & Dance, majoring in theatre performance.

Joaquin recently performed in a production of A Few Good Men at the Power Center in Ann Arbor, the same day he also was part of an outgoing ceremony for wrestling team seniors, all in the days leading up to his birthday. His parents and siblings flew down to Michigan to cheer him on.

© Kelly Ripa

He recently spoke with the campus publication MGoBlue about his pursuits in both wrestling and acting, how he’d caught the theater bug from his older brother Michael, and the lessons he’d learned from each endeavor.

“One thing I did notice is that I’m able to mitigate any feelings of nervousness,” he said of wrestling’s impact on his performance and life in general. “When you’re about to compete, it’s a similar feeling, so you’re just desensitized to it.”

© University of Michigan

Similarly, he added: “I think the psychological side of theatre has helped my wrestling as far as knowing how your energy when you walk into a room affects the people around you.”

“One thing that I love about the locker room is that it’s never not a good vibe. It’s pretty much always people cracking jokes and trash-talking to each other.”

© Kelly Ripa

He also credits his talented classmates in both his theater program as well as on the wrestling team with challenging him to discover new techniques and ways to push through struggles, as well as encouraging him to get better.

“Preparing for rehearsals a lot of times takes being around other people. The same with wrestling,” Joaquin noted. “Being around really high-level wrestlers is what has influenced my process more than anything. So, being around the type of actors that are here in my class, who are so good, has been really impactful.”

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He also credits Michael with getting him acting, even recalling an audition he attended with him once. “With my brother, we would make short movies and stuff on our phones. That’s when I started any remote type of acting.”