Growth Through Tears and The Madness of Musical Theatre - Seussical

The week of Tech week in musical theatre is always exhausting yet exhilarating all at the same time. These kids ranging in age from 9-18 (and two little ones ages 3-5) arrive early and leave late to prepare for, perform, and tear down after the show. The days consist of 7 to 13 hours days running through the performance a total of 4 full shows and hours of rehearsing and mic sound and lighting checks. It's a lot of driving back and forth for me and a lot of socializing and volunteering with other parents, which is not my strong point but so far all of the parents have been a delight, and I have always been made to feel as if any contribution I gave was appreciated.

A little about the Lifelight Youth Theatre Company.

Wahoo! All I can say is that year 2 of Lifelight Youth Theatre and we are still magically in love with musical theatre. To say that LYT has been a God-send would be a drastic understatement. A couple years ago, we had left another group that turned out to be a not-so-good fit for us with some elements of unhealthy, even criminal, issues going on within the group that were handled dangerously poorly. My oldest daughter was left with a tough decision to make as to whether to stay and tough it out or move on. Moving on would mean leaving the friends she had come to know, mostly it would mean not seeing one childhood friend, whom she cherished dearly, every week. She made the heart-breaking decision to leave this group hoping she would still have contact with her dear friend but leading with her heart and with much prayer.

Fast forward to today, and we have juts completed our second year with Lifelight. Though, she sadly has not seen her dear friend from the previous group for more than a year now, through tears and prayers, she continues to grow as a person demonstrating how God has a plan for our lives even through times that look as though everything we thought we knew about life is being yanked from underneath our feet.

In recent months, I have watched this daughter flourish in so many ways, especially spiritually. I contribute this growth to LYT and the Christ-like leadership and student role models she has had the blessing of meeting and getting to know.

She has always been a dancer, dancing from the time she was 18 months old, but now she is focusing on voice while never leaving dance behind. The two combined landed her a lead role in this year's musical. She was a Bird Girl whose character spotlighted voice along with dance and character acting.

She was so fun to watch shine up on stage. It was a pure delight to be in the audience as she took the stage. More importantly, it is a true delight to be in the audience watching her life unfold before my eyes. She is becoming an amazing young lady whose heart is always steadfast on Christ and prayer.

...I would be remiss if I left out her little sister in the equation. She played the part of a Who and was also a delight to watch. The little sis is more of an introvert but has been dancing since the day she stood up on two feet. She doesn't enjoy the limelight but came to life on stage with the rest of the Whos, and I'm so thankful for the dance instruction she continues with LYT that is presented in a Christ-like manner with modesty in dress and praise in the songs chosen.

Now, enjoy some pictures from our week of madness... Let's start with  my girls, so you know who to look for in the pics.