After a grueling six years, it’s finally made its way back from the dead. You guessed it- the Storm has finally revived our musical theater program. Once more, our musical theater program has returned to the stage to bask in the spotlight and show off its stuff!

This school year has brought us many surprises, the revival of the musical theatre program being just one of them. If you were once a student at Imagine Rosefield, the name “Autumn Jones” might ring a bell. If so, you probably remember her as our music teacher who was the brains behind the many elementary Christmas concerts. This year, however, she returns as the brains behind our musical theatre program, Autumn’s Treble Makers!

Jones explained that she decided to bring back the program because of her sheer passion for music and performing arts, expressing her wanting to teach the students here at Imagine Prep the joys it can bring to them as well.

“My vision for Autumn’s Treble Makers is to be able to offer my talents and services to help bridge the gap,” Jones said. “Being on stage is much more than a performance. I have watched friendships blossom, confidence and self-esteem boosted, fears conquered, and leaders be born.”

Autumn Froitland, senior at Imagine Prep Surprise and student volunteer who works alongside Jones in the program, also expressed her hopes of what the program would be able to develop into someday in the future.

“My hope is that it becomes big enough where we could do bigger shows and eventually do audition based sign ups,” Froitland said. “I believe that theater is one of the most important things in the world. It teaches you things that you could never learn in the classroom. It teaches you teamwork and collaboration, responsibility, communication, and everyday social skills. So I think the program is amazing and I think it’s something students should participate in.”

Layna Rubio, another senior at Imagine Prep who handles the behind-the-scenes work in the program, expressed similar views as Froitland.

“My hope for the program’s future is that more people would want to be a part of it because it really doesn’t get the credit that it deserves,” Rubio said. “You have such a fun time and it is something great to be apart of. I wouldn’t trade it for anything else!”

While starting the program itself was anything but a hassle thanks to our principal, Mr. Chris McComb, who is more than eager to provide a variety of new programs to appeal to all of our students, Jones explained that running the program itself has brought upon a few obstacles, one being the ability to generate interest in a new environment. Froitland also expressed her concern over the issue.

“I would say the only obstacle is the lack of people, just because there a lot of roles and we need to make sure every role is played by someone,” Froitland said. “I mean, it sucks sometimes but I try and tell myself that it’s just the beginning and it will eventually get bigger. I’m just thankful that we finally have the program.”

However, that hasn’t stopped either of them from making the most of the experience thus far. Jones expressed how much joy running the program has brought to her.

“My favorite part of running this program is sharing my passion for the arts and the excitement it has brought for those that have enrolled,” Jones said. “I also enjoy seeing familiar faces of students that I once had in class when I taught at Rosefield.”

Froitland added that she enjoys the time she’s spent with the younger members of the group and the overall feel of the community within Autumn’s Treble Makers.

“My favorite part is probably working with the little kids,” Froitland said. “Everyone is so helpful and you can tell that they really enjoy themselves and what they are doing. The environment is goofy and happy. We just love to have fun and with the people involved, it’s hard not too. To just see them enjoying themselves, it’s truly the coolest feeling in the world.”

Rubio added that just seeing how passionate and how much her fellow members are capable of has brought her so much joy and made the experience that much more special for her so far.

“My favorite part about being in the program is working with people that have such amazing talent,” Rubio said. “The kids that we work with are much younger but it is amazing to see the talent that they have and you can see how much they enjoy what they do during rehearsals. Ms. Jones is also amazing! You can tell she loves what she does and she is very passionate about it.”

It’s clear that the program itself has a promising future ahead, thanks to both Jones and the equally as enthusiastic members of Autumn’s Treble Makers. Their first program, “The North Pole Star” will be showing in December, right in time for the holiday season! The show advertises itself as a spin-off of reality shows such as “American Idol” and “The Voice,” with a unique surprise ending that involves actual audience participation when they cast their live votes at the end of the night. Jones also confirmed that they will have another program for the spring season, so be sure to keep an eye out for that as well. We can’t wait to see what new and exciting events Autumn’s Treble Makers have up their sleeve for us!