DECATUR, Ga. -- Take a glimpse back to seventh grade -- back when life was split between goofing around, taking classes ... and, maybe, having that one big dream.
Ask the kids in the choral program at Renfroe Middle School in Decatur, and they'll tell you where their dream stands.
Seventh grader Tenesia Bryant: "When I feel down or something, I'll just burst into song."
Seventh grader Kenzie Kandetzki: "I think singing makes me feel like a bird sometimes."
Sentiments like that make what happened last month all the more momentous for the program.
As instructor Monica Nelson says, "It does pose a challenge whenever we want to do a major production; it's always a question of, 'How are we going to afford this?'"
Such is life for a four-year-old musical theater program at a small school. But back in January, a parent alerted Nelson to the 2012 Junior Theater Festival in Cobb County, where 20 schools would be selected for the "Make a Musical" program, sponsored by the new NBC drama, "Smash".
The only winner from Georgia was Renfroe Middle.
Now, says 7th grader Zaylen McCoy, "We can do more musicals and plays and buy more music for us to sing."
The grant will cover the cost of two musical productions -- just enough for this class of middle schoolers to learn, be goofy, and above all, keep chasing that dream.
"I want students to enjoy music and know that it can be an option for you," says Nelson. "You can do this for the rest of your life."
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