Choral director, thespian, and sophomore Austin Hyde rehearses not only for a lead role in STC musical, Miss Saigon, but also for upcoming choir winter concert.

 
“If I hadn’t joined choir I wouldn’t have made the musical, let alone a lead,” Hyde said.
Hyde is also involved in the new choir club, Silver Sound.

 
“It’s like an intense choir in the way that it’s more dancing rather than just sitting and swaying,” Hyde said.
Jazz Choir showcases a performance four times a year and rehearses about an hour nearly every morning before school.
“We have just five weeks and 11 rehearsals to prepare for the show,” choir teacher and director Cate Obert-Thorn said.
The 26 annual winter choir concert was held at Bethany Lutheran Church on Slaughter Ln. on Friday Dec. 6 from 7 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. admission was free.

 
Due to short rehearsing time, all that goes into a show has to be planned months in advance and gives both directors and students a short amount of time to get it all done.

 
“We start talking about music as early as summer and we gage what music will be best for the students in the sense that we try to pick songs they’ll like, because if they don’t love it then they won’t perform it at the level that we want them to,” Obert-Thorn said.
As well as putting on performances, many choir students also take theatre and other extra curricular activities that choir has helped them in.

 
“Choir has really helped me by not only teaching me how to sing properly but how to be a good chorus member, because regardless of your hopes and dreams you won’t always be the lead in everything,” thespian and sophomore DJ Fortner said.
The program started back in 1988 with director Sheryl Jones and has since then grown into the award-winning program that it is today.

 
“Everyone at this school just exudes talent, there’s not a single program that is bad. We are all really lucky to be part of such a great school,” Obert-Thorn said.