Musical theater is something that affects many people in positive ways; it provides opportunities and friendships along with life lessons. This is no exception for Bearden senior and musical theater member Christina Ledbetter.

After learning about the Bearden theater department while in middle school, Ledbetter quickly came to the decision that she wanted to audition. She found the fact that she had never sung in front of people before to be difficult; however, she was determined and began to find ways to improve.

“I started taking singing lessons, and I took (retired theatre teacher) Mrs. (Leann) Dickson’s drama 1 class,” said Ledbetter. “She was so encouraging, and my friends kept telling me to go for it, so I did. It was easily one of the best decisions I’ve ever made.”

With the support of Mrs. Dickson and friends, Ledbetter auditioned to be in musical theater during her sophomore year and was accepted.

“My first musical was Addams Family and after I was a part of that, I knew I wanted to pursue this,” Ledbetter said.

Currently, Ledbetter is looking at the musical theater departments at Samford, Elon, and Belmont, but she is still looking at other options. She is considering teaching musical theater at a high school level or opening a musical theater studio.

She has now been involved in musical theater at Bearden for three years along with doing other productions outside of a school setting. Ledbetter took part in Addams Family, Les Misérables, and Oklahoma!.

Musical theater has provided Ledbetter and many other people with strong friendships and bonds with cast members; this makes the experience even more surreal and influential overall.

“We get to do what we love with each other – and it is a beautiful thing,” Ledbetter said.

Alongside the friendships, it has allowed her to express herself and grow in a group setting. It has supplied a lot of good in Ledbetter’s life and is something that will be difficult to let go after high school.

“It has definitely been such a creative outlet for me and helped me see how it is to be a part of a team,” Ledbetter said. “I have savored every minute of it and I know I will miss it tremendously when I leave for college.”

This program has given Ledbetter a path to go down for college, as well as providing her with an idea for a potential career in the future.

“This [musical theater] is what I’m passionate about and I want other people to realize how relevant theatre is to our society” she said. “It is the power of storytelling through singing, acting, and dancing. Everyone has a story and all of them are worth telling, so I think that really speaks to me as a performer.”

Starting with Drama 1 up to Oklahoma! Ledbetter has been dedicated and passionate about musical theater and hopes to continue to work with the program throughout college and in her career. It has introduced her to new people and created many opportunities that she may have not had otherwise.