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To Whom It May Concern:

This past month my High School's Theatre Department had the prestigious opportunity to perform our show of "The Wedding Singer" at the Florida State Thespian Festival in Tampa, Florida. And recently were selected as one of the "Top Seven" high school theatre programs in the world, and invited to perform at the International Thespian Festival in June! As great as it sounds it was a journey that was not easy. There's a quote that states "travel the road less taken" and that is exactly what myself and 60 other thespians in my troupe did; thus, is where the story begins...

Just last summer the Theatre Department's Leadership met with our Troupe Director, Jennifer Kelly, and we were asked "what do you want to do this year?" It was no surprise; we all wanted to have a Mainstage this year at the Florida State Thespian Festival which is an honor reserved for only eight schools in the state. As that meeting was adjourned and I look back it seems the months to follow were a blur. That's because in the preceding four months there has never been a dull moment. With 250+ rehearsal hours, nearly $40,000 spent and a million unforgettable memories, the show finally opened on November 14th! Judges attended our show and nearly a month and a half later, the letter came... Lemon Bay High School's production of "The Wedding Singer" was awarded top honors; being one of eight schools in the state to perform at the Tampa Bay Performing Arts Center (Ferguson Hall)!! This news filled out hearts, we became numb. Unfortunately, this was a feeling that would soon return.

Three weeks before bringing the show to Tampa, our Director announced that International judges would be attending our performance at the state festival. She invited them on a whim just to raise the bar for us and "to see what they would say."

Now, over 350+ rehearsal hours and $92,000 spent, April 25th finally arrived. We performed brilliantly for thousands of high school theatre kids, and as the cast took their final bow to a standing ovation from our peers, I along with the rest of the tech crew had tears in my eyes. All because, the moment we all worked so hard for, finally came and unfortunately, was already over.

Or so we thought Exactly two days after our return from our performance in Tampa, Mrs. Kelly asked for us all to sit down for she had some news to share (the results from the judges). We were chosen as one of the seven shows in the world and invited to Mainstage our production at the 2009 International Thespian Festival held at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. And even better, "The Wedding Singer" was asked to close the Festival as the headlining show that would get the attendees pumped for next year's Festival. As soon we heard this, that feeling of numbness that we experienced once before, crept on us again, except this time it was everywhere in our body. We all felt so accomplished when our director finished talking, but it wasn't until later we realized the magnitude of what we just accomplished.

As this exhilarating news started to settle in our minds, it hit us: Troupe #0257 is finally making our small town of Englewood, Florida known for something other than its prime fishing and retirement communities. Now Englewood will be known for its amazing theatre department, and represent, for the first time in more than 10 years, the State of Florida. So it then dawns on us, this is no longer a selfish endeavor, it's an endeavor that represents everyone!

So whether you put this letter on your refrigerator, pass it on to a friend or even throw it away, I hope we touched you. More personally, if you're an educator, an artist, a performer, a single man/woman, child/student, I personally, along with Troupe #0257, hope that you don't give up on your dreams no matter how unrealistic they may seem, because as our Director quotes from Robert Collier, "Success is the sum of small efforts, repeated day in and day out."

All in all, we achieved success when so many didn't believe. In all honesty, I being one who never thought we would be where we are today. However, now writing our story to you, I believe that we can raise $32,000 in two weeks; that our set will find its way to Nebraska. I'm able to believe because of my Director, Mrs. Jennifer Kelly and because of the entire Troupe of 0257. I hope you too believe, since this whole thing is much bigger than just for "Lemon Bay High School Theatre Department." If you would like to take this journey with us, feel free to make a donation of any amount to:

LBHS Theatre Wedding Singer International Fund, 2201 Placida Rd, Englewood, FL 34224 or The Gulf Coast Foundation, Grace's Kids of Lemon Bay High School Theatre Advised Fund http://gulfcoastcf.org/page27421.cfm?ecomfundid=10045661

If a donation is not what can be given, at least share our story, this hard to believe story, that evolved from a small Leadership Meeting in the middle of August that brought together a very diverse group of students, who sacrificed countless hours to reach their goals, developed a family, expected the minimal, and were granted a dream! We sure did "travel the road less taken," and it was well worth it!

Yours Truly,

Cody Max Becker

Stage Manager

Lemon Bay High School Theatre

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